Naruto : The Rune Ninja
by JAYSEN
Summary: The continent of Alecrast just got a new denizen. Yep, our #1 knuckleheaded, vertically challenged ninja, that's who. What can we expect for him in this strange new world that has no shinobi? Naru/small harem
1. A Brand New World

_Hey y'all. JAYSEN here with another story that's been bouncing around my skull for a while. I remember once that I read FreedomGuard's Naruto/Rune Soldier crossover and I really liked it. I was inspired to write this story, only in this one, I used a younger Naruto that was still vulnerable and was still very vulnerable emotionally. The younger Naruto was still starved for attention and acceptance and very fragile in some ways, but still strong in others. _

_I feel that Jenny and Carwess would be able to see past the Kyuubi and see him for who he really is. Carwess would be very interested something that he has never seen before AND Jenny would be very protective of him once she learned of his past. Also, Merrill would see some similarities between Naruto and herself, both being orphans and raised by the streets, not to mention the fact that shinobi and thieves use similar tactics in battle. Melissa, however, would have a massive problem with him on more than one count. _

_She was raised as a noble woman and is somewhat spoiled, while he was a street urchin and an orphan, having to fight for everything he ever had. _

_Her perspective of the world was built through story books, so she believes that all heroes are handsome knights on white stallions. Naruto has seen humanity at its best and worst, and knows that a TRUE hero is one who rises again and again, ignoring the odds and doing what's right. He should know, because he IS one._

_She is a priestess and has been trained to fight evil spirits and the undead. Naruto is in symbiosis with a demon and a very powerful one, at that._

_Enough of my babbling and ranting. On with the fic._

_**VALLEY OF THE END - BORDER OF FIRE AND RICE COUNTRIES**_

A young blonde shinobi stood atop the water that flowed into the lake that made up the valley floor. He stared across the way to his once friend and teammate, who was now attempting to betray the village. Naruto made a promise that he would bring Sasuke back to the village, and he meant it.

The battle that the two former friends fought was nearing it's end. Sasuke was in his level 2 cursed form and Naruto was drawing on the Kyuubi's power, only a tails worth, but still formidable. To Naruto, Sasuke was his family, his brother. He wasn't just going to let him throw his life away for revenge and refused to break his promise to Sakura to bring him back.

As for Sasuke, he wasn't going to let anyone or anything stand in the way of his revenge. He was willing to go as far as kill Naruto in order to gain the power to kill his brother and satisfy his thirst for power. Needless to say, this was a clash that could only end in tragedy.

Not too far away, Kakashi Hatake, their Jounin sensei was racing towards his two students, praying that he wasn't too late. He suddently felt two massive evil chakra's flaring and saw them preparing their best attacks. Kakashi couldn't move, rooted to his spot by the sheer magnitude of the power out there.

As if beckoned by some unseen signal, the two combatants launched themselves toward eachother, Naruto to disable and capture, Sasuke to kill.

_**"SASUKE!!!!"**_

_**"DIE, NARUTO!!!!"**_

Kyuubi powered Rasengan met with a Curse-seal fueled Chidori in an explosion of power. A bright light enveloped them and a violent vortex roared to life, fueled by the clashing energies.

Kakashi raced to pull his two students away from the anamoly before they were sucked inside. "Dear god...This can't be happening...Please, don't let them kill each other." He prayed as he picked up speed.

Naruto was struggling in two different directions. One was against Sasuke and the other was against the pull of the vortex. The Kyuubi inside of him was beginning to panic. _**"Kit!! You must kill him if you want to live!!"**_ The Fox demon screamed at him.

_"No...I promised Sakura-chan....I'm bringing the Teme back alive, even if it kills me!"_ The blonde retorted.

The great fox growled at the stubbornness of its vessel. _**"You stubborn brat!! You're going to kill us both!!"**_

During their exchange, Sasuke noticed that Naruto was distracted and called to him. "Hey, loser...I'll be sending my brother to keep you company in Hell. Maybe Sakura and that Hyuuga wench, too. That is, after I've had my fun with them..." He sneered.

As he said that, he shoved his Chidori right through Naruto's chest, just missing his heart by a scant inch. He thought that it wouldn't be enough to finish off Naruto, so he threw the dying blonde into the vortex as it was closing.

"Goodbye, Dobe." He sneered, with a smirk of absolute evil.

Kakashi what he had just heard and saw from the rookie of the year and last Uchiha. "No...Not Naruto..." He whispered. The Copy-nin quickly remastered himself, and swiftly knocked the prodigy unconscious with a strong blow to his head. He glared down at Sasuke, fighting down the urge to kill him.

"No...I don't want to make Naruto's death meaningless. Your final mission, was a success. I'm so proud of you, Naruto." He told himself sadly. He set to work, binding Sasuke up in wire and slapping a stasis seal on him for transport back to the village. Before heading back, he picked up the crystal necklace that he received from the Godaime Hokage herself that had fallen to the ground where he vanished. He thought that she would like something to remember him by.

_**MYLEE TEMPLE - REVEALING RITUAL ROOM**_

It is a very special event in the life of any priestess of the War God, Mylee. This ceremony, the Ritual of Revealing, would show to the priestess the hero she would be bound to serve. This day, a young woman named Melissa was undergoing the sacred ceremony. She had dark blonde hair, was fairly tall and around 20 years of age, had violet eyes, and was altogether a very attractive young woman.

Watching from the fringe of the pool, Jenny, the High Priestess of the order of Mylee oversaw the whole process. She was a taller, older woman in her early 40's with long reddish hair, light green eyes and a motherly countenance, along with being a seasoned adventurer. She hoped that the ceremony was going well.

"Mylee, great and powerful lord of war...please reveal to me the hero I am bound to serve." Melissa prayed softly.

She heard a voice calling to her, _**"YOUR HERO SHALL BE FROM A FOREIGN LAND. HE SHALL BE ONE WHO HAS RISEN ABOVE A LIFETIME PAIN AND SUFFERING, REMAINING STRONG FOR ONE SO YOUNG."**_

Before she could wonder about what was revealed to her, a violent vortex roared into existence in the air in front of the statue of their deity. The vortex spat out a strange boy, no older than his early teens, who fell into the water back first. She screamed out when he fell, causing Jenny to see what went wrong. The elder woman wasn't prepared for what she saw.

The boy floating in the water was mortally wounded. He had many cuts and lacerations and a gaping hole just a hare away from his heart which was pumping out blood at a lethal pace. She was even more surprised that he was still alive, let alone conscious. The boy had on a strange orange jumpsuit of sorts with a headband that was fitted with a metal plate, which bore a strange spiral leaf insignia. On his face, he had peculiar whisker-shaped markings.

He opened his eyes briefly to see where he was. Jenny had never seen such a young person so badly wounded, or with eyes that told of as much pain and determination as his did.

He reached out to Melissa with a bloody hand which she smacked away in fear, "Help...Me..." He gasped, then collapsed, blood spreading in the water around him at an alarming rate.

The young acolyte was frozen in fright. His eyes were a burning, bloody crimson and his outstreached hand had claws. He had a somewhat feral appearance and to her eyes screamed of evil. She looked over and was shocked to see Lady Jenny rushing to this...things, aid. The elder priestess was frantically checking for his pulse and trying to staunch his bleeding in vain.

Jenny's eyes flew wide with alarm as his breathing ceased and his heart was beginning to fail. She quickly began a healing spell as she turned to Melissa. "Melissa, summon more healers and medics!" She ordered, but Melissa stayed rooted to her spot, now fully clothed.

"GO MELISSA, NOW!! HE IS GOING TO DIE IF NOTHING IS DONE!!" She ordered again, spurring the young priestess into action. She chanted an high-level healing spell in an attempt to save the boy's life.

_**MYLEE TEMPLE GUEST ROOM**_

After hours of medical treatment, the boy was stable enough to last the night, though there were couple of times that they nearly lost him. One thing puzzled the elder woman. The boy, by all rights, SHOULD have died, but by some miracle, he pulled through. All of his wounds told her seasoned eyes that he had been in a battle of unspeakable proportions, and that he refused to give up.

Jenny also felt a slight demonic aura coming from her young blonde guest. A few other priestesses felt it too, but Jenny stayed their hands. She told them that it would be rude and that he should be given the chance to explain. Jenny saw what looked like an intricate seal in a language and text she was unfamiliar with on the boy's abdomen, so she contacted someone who might know.

She also had a good look at the items he had in his pouches and holster, none of which she had ever seen before. He had various small pills and scrolls, at least a dozen star-shaped weapons that she could only guess were throwing weapons, a spool of thin yet very strong metal wire, a few small tags with strange text on it, and 6 diamond shaped knives with rings on the handles, also razor sharp.

Carwess, the Royal Mage and director of the Sorcerer's Guild in Ophen was an old friend of hers. He was very well versed in several arcane languages and texts, so she thought he might be able to tell what the boy is and where he might hail from.

In the early morning, Naruto woke up slowly, clutching his chest. An apprentice priestess whom Jenny assigned to watch over him noticed his stirring. "OoOoHHh, where...am I? Who...are you?" He asked her groggily, trying to get his bearings.

"Oh! You're awake! I'll just go get Lady Jenny." She told him as she got out of her chair. "By the way, my name is Denise, Denise Fairwater. You are inside the temple of the War God, Mylee. Here is some water...um..." She paused, fishing for a name.

"Oh...ah...heh heh. The name's Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki. Nice ta meetcha. And thanks...For the water." He greeted shyly with a bright blush. He saw what she looked like. She was a year or two older than him, had forest green eyes, light red hair pulled back into a braid, and slight freckles on her face that made her look fairly cute.

She giggled at his bashful reaction. "You're welcome, Naruto. I'll be back in a few moments with Lady Jenny."

_'He's kinda cute with those whiskers and his blue eyes...I can't believe Miss Melissa called him evil...'_ She wondered as she went to find the Head Priestess.

Naruto took in his surroundings. _'Where the hell am I? I've never heard names like that before. And what's up with this room? No electricity, running water...'_ He thought to himself.

As he moved to get out of the bed, he felt the Kyuubi try to contact him. _"What the hell do you want, fox?" _He asked in an annoyed tone.

_**"YOU STUPID LITTLE BRAT!! YOU NEARLY GOT US BOTH KILLED BY THAT DAMNED UCHIHA!!"**_ The demon roared from the confines of its cage.

_"Whatever...We're still alive, aren't we?"_

_**"Kit, please...don't take chances like that with me still INSIDE you. If you die, I die. I feel like living a little longer, thank you." **_It shot back snidely.

_"Hey, fox...do you know where we are? I sure as hell don't!"_

The Kyuubi thought for a moment, the replied. _**"Well, we WERE pulled into a dimensional tear...There's no telling what sort of world we're in, but if this room is any indication, the technology isn't as good as ours is. By the way..."**_The monster fox said, changing its tone to a more sly one.

_**"I saw you checking out that young vixen. Giving up on that pink-haired head case? If so, good for you! You're beginning to grow up. From what I can smell, this place has nothing BUT females, and not a dog in the bunch, either! You really hit the mother lode this time, kit!!"**_ The great demon teased its host while almost being giddy at the thought of there being attractive females around.

Naruto sputtered indignantly and began to yell, _"Shut yer pie hole, you walking flea condo! Don't talk about Sakura-chan like that!"_

_**"Sure, kit. Sure..."**_

_"Oh, yeah?! I'll 'sure, sure' your ass!"_

_**"Whatever, shorty."**_

_"I hate you, y'know that?"_

_**"I know...It's a talent. Uhp...Look alive, kit. You've got visitors. One of them has a level of spiritual power that's through the roof for a human." **_It told its host as it kicked him out to the mindspace.

Naruto snapped back to reality just in time for Jenny to come in, accompanied by Carwess. Carwess reminded him of Old Man Sarutobi in a way that he just couldn't put his finger on. He then looked to Jenny and found that she felt...comforting in a way. He noticed that she was flanked by two younger women in similar uniforms. The girl who was there before was there again and winked at him, making him blush heavily.

Carwess noticed this and chuckled. He walked over to his bedside and sat in the chair there. "Hello there, young man. My name is Carwess, the Royal Mage of this kingdom and headmaster of the Sorcerer's Guild." The old man introduced himself with a kind smile.

_'He reminds me of old man Hokage...'_ He wondered with an appraising look.

"Is there something wrong, my boy?" Carwess asked.

"Ah! N-no. It's just that you remind me of someone..." He trailed off looking away.

"A good person, I hope." He joked with the boy.

_'He seems nice...I might be able to tell him...'_ He hoped.

"Y-yeah...He was like a grandpa to me. He died...a few months ago..." He revealed to him, as well as telling him about how it happened and about the world he came from.

Carwess and Jenny shared looks of sympathy. Here was this boy, no older than 12 or 13 at the most, had been through a war and more than most seasoned knights and adventurers, but remained strong through it all. It spoke very highly of his inner strength and character. They asked him how he came to the temple, and he told them of his final mission, to retrieve a traitor and to prevent him from falling into enemy hands. Naruto was given an additional mission : To bring him back to the girl he was in love with himself.

Jenny knew then and there that Naruto a was very special boy. He was willing to give up the girl he loved to make her happy. It spoke to the elder priestess of a level of selflessness, honor, and courage that she had very rarely seen, ever. Even King Rijarl when he was younger didn't measure up to the young blonde before her, and he's only boy. She was more convinced than ever that he was meant to be a Hero to be served by a priestess.

Finally, Jenny got down to the business that Carwess had come for. "Naruto..." She asked in a soft voice that put all of his fears at ease. "What can you tell us about the strange seal on your stomach?" She finished.

This was the question he dreaded. He didn't want these nice people to be afraid of him, but he felt that he at least owed them an explaination in return for saving his life. He sucked in a deep breath and took the plunge.

"Thirteen years ago, a demon called the Kyuubi no Kitsune, or the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, attacked my village. The ninja there all fought to keep it from destroying the village, but suffered massive casualties. Finally, the leader at the time, the Fourth Hokage, came up with a way to stop the demon. He sealed it away, into a newborn child. The demon was too powerful to seal into an object and couldn't be killed by humans." He told them as he paused for breath.

"The technique was called the Shiki Fuuin, or Death Demon Consuming Seal. This called the Death God to our plane, and pulled out the soul of the demon, sealing it into the baby. But the price was the caster's own soul. The Fourth sacrificed his own life to save the village. His dying wish was that the child be treated as a hero for keeping the demon at bay, but..." He trailed off, his gaze going along with it and a sad expression to match.

Jenny finished it for him. She could already guess what happened. "But they didn't, did they?" She asked him softly.

Naruto couldn't hold back his tears as he shook his head in conformation.

"And that child was you...wasn't it?" Carwess asked him in a grandfatherly manner.

Naruto choked back a sob. "M-my life...from day one...they wanted me dead. Old man Sarutobi made a law, to try to keep me safe, but people ignored it. He made another law that kept them from mentioning the fox ever again, but they got their kids to hate me, too. Then, I got thrown out of the orphanage when I was 4...I lived on my own since I was 6...Came through the academy on my own...my team's sensei didn't want to train me, so I learned everything on my own. He just focused on the guy I nearly died to bring back...I doubt they even miss me..." He finished, now sobbing freely.

The room's other occupants were literally floored with what they just learned about their new guest. The two young priestesses couldn't even begin to imagine how he could have survived for so long and Denise couldn't help but sob, even clenching her fists in rage in light of the boy's nightmare of a life. Carwess could tell that the boy's will power was more than enough to keep such a powerful being at bay and actually felt a glimmer of pride for the boy that he shouldn't have felt. He would definitely become a fine young man.

Jenny forgot that she was talking to a young boy momentarily, but she quickly gathered the boy into her arms, rubbing his back in a comforting manner. She could understand the boy's vulnerability and felt her maternal instincts kick in.

"Shhh...It's okay, Naruto. We don't hate you. We couldn't possibly hate you for bearing such an awful burden so well. You have the nature of a true hero inside of you. The truest that I've ever seen or could ever hope to see in my lifetime. I am very proud of you." She assured him.

_'Melissa doesn't know how lucky she is. Mylee has chosen this boy as her hero. It was no accident that he was brought to us when he was, this is destiny at work. If I were younger, I would be proud to serve him as my hero.'_

Naruto stayed awake long enough to hear her say that, then fell asleep in her arms. The elder woman laid him down gently and kissed him on his forehead.

"Sleep well, young Naruto." She told him on a motherly tone of voice. She then turned to Denise. "Can you watch over him while he sleeps?" She asked, the tone in her voice almost imploring her to accept. Jenny didn't know how, but the boy had somehow become important to her. She never had any children, but she could almost see the young blonde shinobi as a sort of surrogate child.

"Of course, Lady Jenny! It would be an honor." She announced proudly, while casting said blonde a smile. After what she had just learned, the boy would amount to a hero of legendary proportions. She sat down in the chair that Carwess had been in and placed a cold cloth on his forehead.

Everyone else left the room to let the boy get some more rest. Carwess gave her his professional opinion on the seal. "I believe that his will power keeps the demon at bay and that he is safe to be around. That seal is a real work of art, the work of a master. It's not even magic based, but still ludicrously effective. I would love to study this some more. When he awakens, could you have him come to the Guild to see me?" He asked his long time friend and former teammate.

"Of course. But, you know, one of my priestesses was perfoming her ritual of revealing when he appeared. She was told that the next man she saw would be the hero that she is to serve. You know what this means."

Carwess sighed. He knew exactly what that meant. "Yes...I know. But it would be best to ask him what he wants. He most likely doesn't know about our ways and customs. Could you teach him about them and see what he thinks first?"

"Yes, I could do that. It think he deserves the chance to start over after all he has been through."

With that settled, the pair continued talked about random things while they waited for him to awaken again.

_A/N: There we go...First chapter down. I've had this buzzing around in my head for close to a year, now. I've been writing it for nearly as long and mean to publish it much sooner, but I kept getting side tracked or forgot._

_Melissa had better get a reality check and a wake up call very soon, or there's going to be some HUGE problem's in the future. Naurto has some MAJOR differences from Louie. He's much younger, had to deal with hatred and ignorance all his life, had to raise himself and was living on his own for a large portion of his life, not to mention that he has more courage and more burdens than Louie. I hope that I didn't over do it with the angst, but it's a nesscessity in getting Jenny and Carwess to understand his situation and why might not want to return. When he left, he had very little holding him to the village._

_Next chapter will deal with Konoha's reaction to Naruto's "death". His funeral will have some unexpected visitors paying their respects. Also, he will meet Ila and Melissa's party, as well._

_I hope you all liked the pervy Kyuubi. I got the idea from a fic by NarutoL0ver entitled "Deep Undercover on a Forbidden Mission". Its a funny Naru/Tsun story with a neat little twist. I have it in my favorites folder if you would like to view it._


	2. Rest In Peace, Naruto

_Next chapter up. This one is kind of sad, as the rest of the Konoha eleven and those closest to Naruto reveal their true feelings upon learning of his supposed death at the hands of Sasuke. As I said before, his funeral will get some unexpected visitors, some of which are very powerful. It just goes to show that Karma builds and grows._

_**KONOHA : HOKAGE'S OFFICE**_

The Godaime Hokage sat at her desk, cradling a bottle of sake in one hand and holding a picture that she took with Naruto, Shizune, Jiraiya and Tonton on their way back to Konoha. She gazed sadly at the picture, some tears coming to her eyes unbidden. _'Stupid gaki...you were the only reason I took this damn job. I loved you...Naruto. Like I would love a son...if I had one. Why did that damn necklace have to claim another loved one? I miss you...'_

As she fell into another restless slumber, she remembered all that happened In the past 48 hours.

_All of the members of the retrieval team returned alive, all except one. Naruto was still out there. Tsunade waited at the gates for him, along with his teammate Sakura Haruno. 'She's probably only waiting for the Uchiha...' She thought in disgust._

_They didn't have to wait long. They soon saw that Kakashi Hatake was trudging up the path to the village gates, but he was one person short. Sakura raced forward. "Where's Sasuke-kun?!" She asked, completely forgetting her other teammate. _

_Kakashi met her with a scowl. "The traitor is right here." He snapped. He looked at her and waited. "Well? What about your other teammate? What about Naruto?" _

_Sakura looked puzzled. "Huh? What are you talking about, Kakashi-sensei?"_

_Kakashi didn't have time to answer that before Tsunade ran forward. "Where's Naruto?! What happened to him?!" Kakashi remained silent with a hangdog look on his face. "Dammit Hatake, ANSWER ME!!" She roared, lifting him off of the ground by his vest._

_He simply pulled out the crystal necklace that was left behind where he dissapeared. "I'm...sorry. This is all that's left." He muttered sadly, his voice wavering as he told the angry Hokage about the battle at the Valley of the End, as well as Naruto's fate._

_The mighty Hokage fell to her knees as she held the necklace. "No...Not again...Please, no...Not my Naru-chan, too..." She whimpered as she began to sob openly._

_Kakashi straightened himself and spoke, "Hokage-sama, I'll be taking the traitor to the ANBU holding cells. Naruto tried to do as little damage as possible in his apprehension of Sasuke Uchiha, so hospitalization will not be nesscessary." The copy-nin stated coldly._

_"But Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke-kun couldn't have done that to Naruto! I know..."_

_"You know NOTHING, young lady." Tsunade snarled at Sakura, cutting her off. "That little bastard MURDERED your other teammate. He nearly got the entire team and two of my Jounin killed due to his selfishness. He was going to join up with the very person that killed the Sandaime, my sensei and father figure during my younger years."_

_"He...killed Naruto? No...This can't be true..." She whimpered._

_"It IS true, Sakura. I witnessed the killing blow myself and he flung the body into an unknown vortex afterwards. He knew EXACTLY what he was doing." Kakashi told her._

_Sakura could only sob. 'Naruto gave his life...to bring Sasuke back. He kept his word, even at the highest cost. Sasuke killed... no...murdered him.' She thought angrily. "I'm...such a selfish person...I begged Naruto to bring him back to me...He gave his life to make it happen..." She cried and sobbed as she ran home._

_"He will be tried as a traitor to this village. If I have my way, he will DIE. I will do it myself if need be." Tusnade answered, fury evident in her tone._

_The next day, the village council convened on the fate of Sasuke. _

_Kakashi had given his testimonial of what happened at the Valley of the End, leaving out nothing. He summoned Pakkun, who verified what was told to the council. The copy-nin had a bad feeling about how they were taking this. They didn't even care that Sasuke had killed a fellow Konoha Shinobi in cold blood and tried to defect to one of the worst criminals in the villages history, not to mention the murderer of the Sandaime. Their minds were already made up, regardless of how the mission went._

_One of the elders, Homura, stepped forward to deliver the verdict. "We the council, find Uchiha Sasuke not guilty of treason and murder. We believe that Uchiha-san was kidnapped and was under the influence of the curse-seal when he fought with...the Uzumaki." He said, spitting out Naruto's name with disgust. _

_"Furthermore, we will be setting up brides for Uchiha-san to build up his clan. He requested the heiresses to the Hyuuga and Yamanaka clans, and the daughter of the Haruno family to be his brides and carriers of his children. We will expect your cooperation in this matter."_

_The shinobi side of the council blew up in rage over the blatant miscarriage of justice. Inoichi Yamanaka shouted out, "So the Uchiha is going free after what he did and you want MY daughter to bear his accursed spawn just because he demands it?!?!"_

_He was backed up by Hiashi Hyuuga. "I refuse to hand over my daughters to that...traitor. Furthermore, I move that a suitable funeral is held for the young Uzumaki, whose loyalty to this village has be proven to be above and beyond the call of duty in completing this crucial mission. His bravery and courage saved us from the wrath of the Suna Jinchuuriki where the Uchiha cowered in fear. He taught my daughter to be strong where I could not. He helped my nephew Neji overcome his hatred and brought my family back to me. He has proven himself to be a true hero. An honorable funeral and adding his name to the memorial stone would be the least we could do for him." He finished, with all of the major clans clamoring in agreement._

_"I agree! That pup has shown us what REAL loyalty is time and time again! He still remained faithful after all of the abuse he endured at YOUR hands." Tsume Inuzuka snarled, pointing to the much larger civilian council. _

_"If the boy was half as dangerous as you made him out to be, we'd all be dead right now. He proved himself to be a valuable asset to our shinobi forces during the invasion." Shikaku Nara added._

_Homura merely snorted in derision. "The desicion stands. It is only murder when you kill a human being, which a jinchuuriki isn't. He was Konoha's sacrifice to die as we, the council, see fit. He will not be allowed a funeral within the confines of the village..."_

_"HE WILL HAVE A FUNERAL, DAMN YOU!! By my authority as the Godaime Hokage, he was a ninja under my command and died accomplishing a sanctioned mission!" She snarled at the elder, before calming down and burying her face in her hands. _

_"Considering that we hid his past and true heritage from him, denying him his birthrights, he deserves that much from us at least." She added miserably, her guilt mounting._

_One of the civilian council members was puzzled by this and spoke out. "What do you mean, 'True heritage' ? What is this about?" He asked._

_Tsunade smirked. She still had an ace in the hole. "This information was classified and very few knew about it. In fact, only two people alive know about this secret. Seeing as how Naruto is dead, it no longer matters. Naruto's true name is Naruto Namikaze." She told them, pausing to let it sink in._

_Tsume was the first to speak up. "You mean...that pup was really..."_

_"Yes, he was. He was the son of my student and the Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze, as well as my godson." Jiraiya announced from the doorway of the meeting room. Everyone turned to the Toad Sennin. "I just got finished sealing up that curse mark and that brat's chakra network. He won't be going anywhere for a while."_

_Another council member shouted out in outrage. "What have you done, you fool?! You can't do that to the Uchiha..." He would have said more, but an angry Sannin pinned him to the wall, lifting the fat man off of the ground by his throat. _

_"I'll do what is nesscessary to ensure that the traitor doesn't get away. Do not presume to order me around about matters you know nothing of. That brat murdered my godson. In my opinion, he got off easy. I would have tortured him to death. Slowly." He growled as he let the man go. _

_The shinobi council reflected on what they just learned. Hiashi stood to speak. "He was...the most noble of us all. Yet...somehow...I knew it." He said, letting out a small smile. _

_"He looked just like Minato, he even had the same smile and personality. When I saw him at the Chunnin Exams, I thought that Minato had been reincarnated in that boy."_

_Tsunade spoke out next. She felt that it was time to tell them just what the young blonde meant to her. _

_"I...I saw him...like a son...the son I could never have, but always wanted. I loved that little brat so much...I took this goddamn job for his sake!! He convinced me to come back and take it!!! He gave my life back to me and gave me something to live for!!! That little son of a bitch Uchiha took my baby away from me!!!!" The Slug Sannin roared in despair and rage, the rage of a mother who lost her child. They all started to back away from Tsunade. After all, an upset Tsunade was more dangerous than Orochimaru could ever be._

_"Was it that serious, Hokage-sama?" Tsume Inuzuka asked softly. Being a mother herself, she could sympathize. If Kiba or Hana were killed, she would be just as upset._

_"I loved him as much as I gave birth to him myself..." She sobbed._

_All of the shinobi clan heads bowed their heads. They all had children of their own and they would be just as upset if their children were killed off on that mission. Two of them almost were. Chouza and Hiashi stood shoulder to shoulder, looked at each other and nodded. "We, the shinobi council, move that Sasuke Uchiha be put to death for the murder of Naruto Namikaze, treason, and attempted murder of Chouji Akimichi and Neji Hyuuga, as well as assualt on Sakura Haruno."_

_This sent the civilian portion of the council into an uproar. They all demanded that Sasuke be turned loose and that all charges be dropped. Danzo stepped forward, taking advantage of the situation. "I propose that this matter is put to a vote. All those in favor of this sentencing, raise your hands." As he said this, Homura, Danzo himself, and all of the civilian reps stayed silent. All of the shinobi clan heads raised theirs, including Elder Koharu, Jiraiya, and Tsunade._

_"All opposed and in favor of a full pardon and the bridal program?" The entire civilian council, Danzo and Homura raised their hands. Danzo was licking his chops at the possibility of getting an Uchiha into his Root program. Homura was just glad to be rid of the demon child._

_Koharu looked at her former teammate in disgust. "I am so ashamed of you...Hiruzen and Minato are spinning in their graves right now." The old woman spat as she stormed from the room._

_"You may have won the vote, but I will still tell everyone the truth. See if I don't." Tsunade vowed as she made her way back to her office._

_**FLASHBACK END**_

The rest of the rookie teams, the Suna Siblings, Team Gai and their senseis had all gathered in her office to hear about the results to the mission. Shikamaru was still beating himself up about the results so far and he still didn't know about Naruto. Sakura and Kakashi knew, but wouldn't talk to anyone. The two of them were so ridden with guilt, that no one had even seen them in the past two days.

Ino looked nervously at the Godaime waiting for her to speak. "Um...Hokage-sama? What's wrong? Why were we called here?"

Tsunade looked up at the assembled shinobi with bloodshot eyes, as if she had been crying for a while. She wiped her eyes and went into Hokage-mode. "I know that the results of the mission have not been released yet, but I will reveal them now. Shikamaru Nara, your first Chunnin mission was a success. Sasuke Uchiha has been successfully apprehended by Naruto Uzumaki and brought back to the village."

The Nara looked up, then around. "But, where is he? Where's Naruto?"

Tsunade clenched her fists and the remnants of Team 7 tensed. "Naruto Uzumaki...is dead. He gave his life to make the mission a success. Sasuke Uchiha is one who killed him." She had to stop there or she would lose control again.

The rest of the people assembled were shocked into silence. The senseis all closed their eyes and bowed their heads in respect, with Kurenai tearing up a bit.

Hinata looked horrified. "N-n-no...Naruto...kun...is...dead?" Then she slumped to the ground in a heap, over come with grief.

Kiba was next. "Naruto...is dead? That bastard Uchiha...I'll kill him myself!" He growled in rage.

Ino fell to her knees, "Sasuke-kun...murdered Naruto? Naruto gave up his life to bring him back...And I was always so mean to him..." The blonde girl began to sob.

The most surprizing reaction was that of Gaara. "He...saved me...and I couldn't save him..." He told himself. Regret and sorrow for another person was something foreign to him, but he felt them nonetheless.

Tsunade called for their attention again just as Hinata was brought back around. "I'm not done yet. There was a major secret about Naruto, that I feel you should know. First, is the truth about the Kyuubi..." She started as she told them the sad truth of the jinchuuriki's and the truth about Naruto and his life.

Gaara was saddened even more than before. "He...was more like me than I ever thought." He choked out, acutally crying for his fallen fellow jinchuriki. Gaara actually shed tears for his fallen 'brother'.

Hinata felt something foreign as well. She felt anger, pure rage at how Naruto had be treated his whole life, but amazed that he never complained about.

Sakura felt even lousier than before. Naruto had to live though a nightmare that he was forced to call his life, bear this horrifying burden, and she had been nothing but cruel to him. He gave his life to keep his promise to her, regardless of how he felt personally. _'He brought him back to me...even though he wanted me for himself...He loved me...and I hurt him so badly. Now, I'll never get the chance to say that I'm sorry. I'm such a bitch.'_

Lee gripped his Konoha headband so hard that he bent it and he ripped it from his waist. "I cannot fight for a village that has commited such nightmareish sins against someone they should owe their very lives to. I resign." He muttered coldly as he threw it to the floor.

"Y-you can't mean that, can you?" Tenten asked him.

"Yes I do. He and I were both orphans, both dead lasts, and both had big dreams and the drive to reach them, to make them a reality. We were so much alike..." The spandex clad nin choked out.

Gai stepped up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Naruto-kun wouldn't want you to quit. He kept on fighting for us all, regardless of how the village treated him. He never quit and neither should you, Lee. Instead, try to honor him by achieving your dream." He told his carbon copy student in a rare moment of clarity and wisdom.

The spandex clad Jounin greatly admired Naruto's drive and ambition. Gai could clearly see that he had massive potential and wished he could have helped Naruto at least a little bit as a thank you for inspiring Lee. He knew that Naruto was forced to fight his battles alone, but he faced it with a determination that had rarely been seen before. He never flinched, backed down or looked back. He just kept moving forward and keeping the faith.

"He died for a village that hated him, but he faced it like a man should and for that, he has my undying respect. He knew what it was like to bear an unwanted seal even more that I do, and he never let it stop him. He will always hold a place of honor among the Hyuuga clan." Neji vowed.

Tsunade held her had up to silence them. "I also called you here to tell you all that I will personally be holding a funeral for him next week. I would like you all to come and also hire you all to prevent any interference or sabotage." She told them.

All of the teams agreed to do it. The senseis led their teams out of the office and to start preperations for the final farewell to the blonde that touched their hearts. Tsunade prepared a missive to send to Spring Country to inform Princess Koyuki of Naruto's death in the line of duty. She knew that the soverign was rather fond of him, as well as Boss Jirocho. The Wasabi Clan boss had taken a shine to the young blonde ball of energy, and would miss him dearly. She had heard about Naruto's first C-rank mission in Wave, so she sent out a missive to Tazuna and his family to attend. They were also told the truth about the boy. Next, was a message to Takigakure. Their leader, Shibuki, owed Naruto a huge debt for changing him from a coward into the hero and leader that his village needed.

A week had passed, and the day of the funeral had come. The civilian council had told the populace that the demon was dead, and they never stopped celebrating. They even looted his apartment and burned all of his belongings that they could find in the middle of the village.

Sakura was disgusted with her parents, who were among those who celebrated Naruto's death. "How...How could you be so heartless?!"

"Sakura, why do you defend that little monster?" Her mother demanded.

"Because her protected me and always encouraged me! He protected the whole village from that monster his whole life and people like YOU tried to make my generation hate him for something he had no control over." She spat at her parents.

"Well, get over it. We've decided to enroll you into the Uchiha bridal program. Next week, you are going down to the Uchiha district and you are going to bear an Uchiha child!" Her mother squealed in glee. The woman felt that if her daughter were to be chosen as a bride, she would never have to lift a finger again in her life.

Sakura was understandably outraged. "I can't believe that you would have me marry the traitor who murdered my teammate and friend!" She bellowed.

"But Sakura, I thought that you liked Sasuke-sama?" Her father questioned her, puzzled.

"No, I won't let that...monster touch me. Find someone else to carry his evil spawn because I refuse." She seethed at them before storming up the stairs to her room to get ready for the funeral.

The guests for the funeral began to arrive in the village with their entourages. Boss Jirocho was the first to arrive and he had brought Idate along with him. Idate had been released from the missing nin list and properly discharge from service, enabling him to travel freely. Idate felt that he owed Naruto a debt of honor and repayed it by coming to pay his last respects. Jirocho was saddened that such a promising young man was cut down before his time.

Seemingly right behind them, was Shibuki of Takigakure and his escorts. He felt grateful that Naruto instilled into him the nature of a true hero and defeated Suien for him. His escort, a young woman named Fuu, approached Tsunade and offered her condolences. She was puzzled as to why this girl would grieve for someone that she barely knew.

Her response was simple. "Because...I am just like him. I am the vessel of the Shichibi. We jinchuuriki grieve for our own."

Surprizingly, more shinobi from different villages began to show up. From Kumo, came the Nibi and Hachibi vessels, Yugito and Kirabi. From Iwa, came the Yonbi and Gobi vessels, Roushi and Han. Finally, from Kiri came the Sanbi and Rokubi, Yagura and Rokuro. For the first time, all of the remaining Jinchuuriki were assembled in one place to mourn the loss of one of their own, even if they never really met their fallen 'brother'. Their demons felt the disappearance of the Kyuubi and believed it to be dead.

Their villages all had at least some intel on Naruto, being a jinchuriki himself not to mention carrying the most powerful Bijuu in the world inside of him. The sight of these supposed enemy ninja mourning the loss of her son brought Tsunade to tears. They all listened to Tsunade as the beautiful Hokage told them the tale of Naruto Uzumaki, the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. Needless to say, they were all speechless and enraged. Even the laid back Kirabi had to hold himself back from going postal.

Koyuki-hime was the next to arrive. The young blonde held a very special place in her heart as her hero and Knight of the Snow. She was also outraged that the villagers were so cruel to him. She felt that no demon would have saved her and her country the way he did. The young princess vowed that a memorial would be erected in her country on the palace grounds to her hero, one that would stand for all time.

Her escort was none other than Fubuki Kakuyoku, a Yuki-nin that used to work for her uncle. The pink-haired woman had survived the blast that was caused by her chakra armor, and had sworn her services to the princess, now queen, of Snow Country. From what she learned of Naruto, he was a good kid and didn't deserve the life that was thrust upon him. She hoped that the next world would be kinder to him than this one was.

Next was the Daimyo of Wave and Tazuna himself along with Tsunami and Inari. Since they were still recovering from the damage Gatou had done, Jiraiya and Kakashi themselves provided them with an escort to the village, free of charge. The Daimyo felt that the Uzumaki boy demonstrated what it meant to be a hero and deserved his respect for saving his country. Tazuna and his family had brought a handsome handmade casket. It was one of Tazuna's finest creations. Inari cried his eyes out for his 'Onii-chan' and cursed Sasuke for taking him away.

They knew that there was no body to bury, so Tsunade laid her crystal necklace inside the casket, wishing she could see the face of the boy she considered her baby one last time. She had to be helped away from the altar by an equally upset Jiraiya. This was the first time the public had seen the two mighty Sannin shed tears. Shizune came up to bid farewell to the boy she had all but adopted as her kid brother. She truly loved the boy, as he always somehow managed to brighten her day.

Jiraiya and Tsunade had called out their summons to say goodbye. Gamabunta had brought his two sons with him, to say goodbye to their 'bro'. The great toad boss himself wanted Naruto's name to be honored along side his father's on Myobokuzan Mountain, the Toad Domain. Ever since Naruto learned to summon, Gamakichi had become one of Naruto's best and only friends. He often summoned him, they always hung out, played pranks, or played together, and he would miss the human boy who became like a member of his family.

Katsuyu felt that losing him was a great loss. She felt attached to him, almost the same way Tsunade did. Katsuyu was always the maternal sort. Without warning, the two Toad Elders, Fukasaku and Shima, arrived to at least say goodbye to the boy who held so much of their grandson's respect. Hearing stories of Naruto's deeds and exploits, they had wanted to meet him for some time now.

Koyuki made her way up to the casket that should have contained the body of her hero. "Naruto...you taught me that I needed to stop running and face reality. I was acting so spoiled and selfish when I told you that you didn't know anything about pain or loss, but you were the most tortured soul of them all and you still didn't let that stop you from moving forward and you never cried for yourself, only others." She choked out, reaching into the pocket of her robes and pulled out her 'tears', placing the bottle into the casket. "For the boy who cried all of his tears for everyone else, leaving none for himself. Goodbye, my brave little hero. I hope to see you, Sandaiyuu, and my father again when my time in this world is up."

Teuchi and Ayame Ichiraku paid their final respects to their best and favorite customer. Teuchi thought of the boy as a nephew and Ayame her baby brother. They would miss him coming in and downing jaw-dropping amounts of ramen along with his stories. They announced that Naruto's usual Miso Pork will now be called the Uzumaki Special in his honor.

Next was the Hyuuga clan. Hiashi told of how Naruto reunited his family and helped Hinata find herself and grow stronger. Hanabi never really knew him, but from what she heard from her father, he was a great person. Coming from her father, this was serious. He very rarely gave out praise to anyone, especially to someone outside of the clan. Hinata broke into tears, knowing that she would never see him again and vowed that Sasuke would pay dearly for this.

The two generations of the Ino-Shika-Cho Trio filed in next. Ino cried and said that she was sorry. She wished she had another chance to get to know him, and she would have given him a chance with her. As she stepped away, she kissed the coffin, _'Naruto-kun, where ever you are, I hope you felt that. I'll miss you._..' Chouji and Shikamaru grieved the loss of their friend. Chouji placed the last chip in his bag into the coffin and Shikamaru placed his favorite Shougi pieces inside.

Then came Team Gai. Gai placed a copy of his own suit into the coffin, Lee placed his old headband inside, and Tenten placed her lucky Kunai next to it, out of respect for the deceased Genin that taught her that no one is perfect. Iruka followed them up and placed Naruto's old goggles that he rescued from the fire inside, hoping that his little brother would find the happiness and peace that had eluded him his whole life in the next.

Team Kurenai came up to the casket next. Kurenai shook her head in sorrow. "Naruto-kun...you knew what true suffering was, yet you gave everything to help others. I hope that the next life treats you better."

Kiba walked up after his sensei, with a bandaged Akamaru on his shoulder. "Why...why you? You were always fun...planning a prank or telling a good joke. I'm gonna miss you...Naruto." With that Akamaru let out a long howl, telling all how he felt.

Shino came up the casket and peered inside. "Even though there's no body, I can still send you off properly..." He said, releaseing a small cloud of butterflies.

"There. You have an escort to heaven now. Good luck up there. I'll see you there when my time here is done." Those were the most words anyone had heard the silent Aburame say, but they were hauntingly appropriate. They could have sworn they heard him sniffle a bit when he made his way back.

Anko walked up to the coffin after Team 8. "Y'know...You and I weren't all that different. We both put our lives on the line for a village that hates us. I hope that you went to a better place than this hellhole. I hope I'll see you again, when it's my time to go."

Ibiki followed her up to the altar to say his goodbye. Naruto was one of the only Genin he recommended for Chuunin. His explaination was that he showed the courage to step into the unknown if nesscessary. Naruto also had a hand in reuniting him with his brother, Idate. He also vowed to get as much info out of the Uchiha brat as he could before he broke him, council be damned.

Asuma, Konohamaru, and Udon made their way up to the dais. Asuma put his trench knives and his lucky zippo inside the coffin. He remembered when Naruto was real little, that he was fascinated by his lighter. He was also planning on teaching Naruto to use knives like his own someday. He saw Naruto as a nephew like Konohamaru and wanted him on his team. _'If that would have happened, maybe this would have been avoided.'_

Moegi followed them up to the altar with her grandmother and village elder, Koharu. She wept for the loss of the one she saw as a caring big brother, one who she could talk to and confide in and even harbored a small crush on him. She reached up and untied her pigtails, letting her hair flow freely and placed the ribbons that held them into the coffin. They were a gift from Naruto not long before the Chunnin exams and she cherished them greatly.

Koharu watched her young granddaughter with sympathy and understanding, as she felt the same way when Sarutobi died. She was also ashamed of herself for believing that Naruto was a demon, but felt that helping make this funeral happen was her first step towards forgiveness.

Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon each placed their goggles into the casket a sign of respect for their fallen leader. The young Sarutobi vowed that he'd become the Rokudaime in Naruto's place and make the village into one that his 'Nii-chan' would be proud of.

Gaara walked up to the coffin his brother was supposed to be in and bowed his head. "My brother...We both knew the same pain, yet we were so different. Your pain forged you into a strong and kind person, the kind of person I want to be. You gave me a goal, a new purpose. I will take your dream onto myself and become the Kazekage. I will lead my people with the compassion that you taught to me." He vowed solemnly. Temari and Kankuro gave their thanks for bringing their baby brother back to them and making them a family again.

Many others came forth to offer their final farewell until finally Team 7 came up. Kakashi came up and placed a peculiar three-pronged kunai that his sensei gave to him into the coffin. He said that it just felt right and that his sensei would have wanted it that way. Finally, Sakura came up to the coffin.

"Naruto, I know that I always thought you were annoying and stupid. I was just a stupid, spoiled little girl who couldn't see the truth, even though it was staring me in the face. When Kakashi-sensei came back without you, at first I never noticed that you weren't there. But after I heard how you gave your life to keep your promise to, it made me think. You always liked me, but you wanted to bring him back to make me happy. That told me one thing. You didn't like me. You loved me, with all of your heart. After I heard about how you have been keeping the Kyuubi trapped your entire life and how this village wanted you dead for it, my parents included, I couldn't stand it anymore. You must have thought that if you told anyone, that you would be alone for the rest of your life, forever unwanted and unloved. But, I want you to know...that I would have married you. Goodbye...I love you. I always will and I'll never forget you." She finished with a whisper.

Hinata heard her confession and instead of being furious, she wrapped the pink-haired girl in the strongest embrace she could muster. "I loved him, too. I know your pain and I won't let you bear it alone."

Sasuke and most of the civilian council showed up without warning to the funeral. "What is this? I killed the demon and all of you fools act like he was actually worth something." He sneered at the crowd.

Homura stepped forward. "I thought I said that the filthy little demon wasn't authorized to receive a funeral, Tsunade. Throwing his body in a ditch would have sufficed."

Everyone turned to them, insanely pissed off that this traitor not only had the nerve to show his face, but also insult the memory of their young hero. The jinchuuriki were enraged that he insulted their fallen brother as well as their kind. They all got into position to attack, with Yagura and Kirabi readying their swords.

Both generations of Ino-Shika-Cho teams practically snarled at him and the council, their eyes alive with rage and hate.

The Hyuuga that attended all activated their Byakugan, even little Hanabi. If Naruto was as great as her father told her, he was worth fighting for. Hinata was filled to the brim with fury and was just a hair away from killing the traitor as he so deserved.

Anko and Ibiki both shared looks of disgust for the Uchiha traitor. They both wanted to 'play' with him so badly they could taste it. Iruka had never felt so much anger and hatred in his whole life.

'_That little bastard killed the last of the family I had left.'_ The normally gentle school teacher snarled mentally.

Koyuki and Fubuki were also filled with anger. Just who did this brat think he was, barging into a funeral and insulting the dead? Fubuki was flipping through some hand seals for a Ice Jutsu, but was stopped by Koyuki's hand on her shoulder.

Sasuke looked at the crowd and saw the three girls he chose for his brides standing together. "There you are. Let's go. I won't have any wives of mine mourning the dobe." He sneered at them while he went to grab Sakura by the arm.

Sakura slapped his hand away, then slapped him across the face with all of her might. "Don't touch me, you disgusting traitor. I'll kill myself and be with Naruto-kun again before I marry you." She snarled as she backed away from him and stood behind her sensei, who put his arm in front of her protectively as he uncovered his Sharingan eye.

Sasuke looked shocked for a moment before putting on an arrogant smirk. "What? You don't love me anymore? Why are pining for a dead loser anyway?" He mocked her, turning to Ino.

"What? You have feelings for the dobe, too?" He asked her while moving toward her, only to be blocked by her father.

"Not one step closer, Uchiha." Inoichi snarled as he stood in front of his daughter.

Sasuke's expression changed from amused to angry. "How dare you deny me what I want?! I'm giving your pathetic tramp of a daughter that honor of bearing my children and this is how you repay me?!" He screamed, turning his attention to Homura and Danzo.

"Why are you just standing there?! Get me my brides!!" He ordered.

Danzo snapped his fingers and over a dozen of his ROOT shinobi appeared and advanced upon the three girls. Just as they were going to reach out and grab them, they were encased in a shield of sand, courtesy of Gaara whose siblings joined him by his side, as well as the other jinchuuriki.

"You go too far." He told them in dead yet still serious tone as he grabbed them all in his Sand Coffin. Clenching his fist, he crushed all of the unauthorized ANBU in one stroke.

"Back off or you are next. Naruto isn't here to save you this time." He growled as he littered the ground before them with blood and death, with much of the crowd promising the same.

The rest of the guests began to shout at them to leave. Sasuke was now enraged that the shinobi population had turned against him. "YOU'LL ALL PAY WHEN I AM HOKAGE!!! YOU WILL ALL BOW TO ME, THE MIGHTY UCHIHA!! I ALWAYS GET WHAT I WANT, EVEN YOU THREE WHORES!! YOU WILL BE MINE AND THE GHOST OF THE DOBE WILL NOT STOP ME!!!!!" He screamed out, insanity and rage burning in his eyes as he turned and ran back to the Uchiha compound, the council following him in a hurry.

After the commotion died down, the funeral was over and everyone went home. The foreign dignitaries left the following day. The rulers of Snow and Wave vowed that they would speak with the Fire Daimyo about the ruling of the council concerning the traitorous actions of the Uchiha and about the true identity of Uzumaki Naruto.

Jiraiya stopped the Bijuu carriers and gave them some vital information. He informed them of the Akatsuki and their intentions and members. The oldest of the vessels, Roushi, told him that should the time come to fight them, then all eight of them will join forces to wipe them out. Jiraiya shuddered at the sheer might that such an alliance would wield, but knew that Naruto would have felt the same. He would have loved to have met them, people just like himself.

Deep within the Akatsuki base, Pein and Madara seethed with anger. The container of the Kyuubi and the Kyuubi itself were lost forever. Their goal was now unobtainable due to the Uchiha boy. **"Itachi...Your little brother and the Snake Traitor have ruined all we have labored to achieve. I trust that the council of that village will not let Tsunade and Jiraiya will see to the boy. We will go to the Sound and wipe it off of the face to the earth."** The Akatsuki leader growled.

**"Yeah...I'll turn that crappy country into the world's biggest pothole, yeah."** Deidara replied, almost drooling with anticipation. The so-called Mad Bomber of the Akatsuki longed for the chance to unleash wanton destruction.

**"Too bad about that Kyuubi kid. He was kinda interesting."** Commented Kisame.

**"Fuck yeah! More offerings to Jashin-sama! Score!"**

**"Shut up, Hidan. Just don't mutilate them so badly that I can't collect the bounties this time."**

**"Fuck off, Kakuzu! Don't give me your 'money is all' crap!"**

Pein had heard enough of the 'zombie brothers' bickering. **"ENOUGH!! We head to Sound in a few days. There will be no survivors. Itachi, you will go to Konoha and take care to your brother. After Sound and Orochimaru are destroyed, all of you are free to do as you will. Without the Kyuubi, our goal is unreachable."** Pein ordered, his tone carried a feeling of defeat. With that, the members of Akatsuki went to prepare for the assualt on the Sound.

Itachi was left to think for a while. _'I failed you, Naruto-kun. My foolish brother has proven himself no different than the rest of my clan. I hope that when we meet in the next world, you can see it in your heart to forgive me...'_ The saddened Uchiha thought as he turned in the direction of Konoha.

"Yondaime-sama, Sandaime-sama, please forgive me." Itachi murmured.

_A/N: A very sad chapter, but funerals usual are that. I should know, having been to enough of them for one lifetime. I hope you liked Shino's parting gesture. For Tsunade, she saw him as a son and that is what makes her so dangerous right now. No mother EVER wants to see her baby die before her. As for Sakura, she had the kind of wake up call that no one would want. She opened her eyes to not only find that Sasuke was a traitorous piece of shit, but that the only who truly loved her was dead, died trying to fulfill her request. I hope that the idea of the remaining Jinchuriki attending the funeral wasn't to corny. As for some of the guests, Shibuki is from an OVA, Boss Jirocho and Idate are from the Anime series, and Koyuki and Fubuki are from the first Naruto movie. Now, you all know that the Akatsuki won't let this go unanswered. Sasuke and Orochimaru are now in their crosshairs and the remaining jinchuriki are safe, their goal is now unobtainable._

_This entire chapter I wrote while listening to a song called "Con Te Partiro" or "Time to say Goodbye", as sung by Sarah Brightman and Andrea Boccelli. It's a hauntingly beautiful song and very appropiate for the mood of this chapter. I recommend at least listening to it if you have Limewire or some other media download program._


	3. Changes and Similarites

_Chapter three now up! Life goes on for Naruto, who is unaware of the how his disappearance was taken back in Konoha. As of right now, he has no intentions of going back. Why should he, when all that awaits him is more pain and suffering? As far as he knows, no one would care if he died. He felt that as soon as Sasuke was back, he would have outlive his usefulness to her and would have been abandoned again. It would have been true, if not for Tsunade and Kakashi reminding her that his demise was partially her fault since the promise she had Naruto make caused him to hold back. If Naruto were allowed to do as he wished, Sasuke wouldn't have had a prayer._

_**OPHEN : STREETS**_

Naruto was walking through the streets of Ophen, heading towards the Sorcerer's Guild building with the directions that Jenny-Obasan had given him. Along the way, Naruto felt his belly rumbleing, so he stopped at a tavern for some food with the money that Jenny handed him. The past week while he recovered, he felt that he needed to earn his keep, so he performed various odd jobs and tasks around the temple.

Many of the priestesses got to know the helpful young blonde and some became rather fond of him. Young Denise actually kissed him on the cheek for helping her with her chores, making him keel over. Many of the older priestesses found out something peculiar, but cute about his whisker marks. When they were rubbed gently, he actually purred and became putty in their hands.

When he wasn't helping out, he attempted to train. The Kyuubi found his efforts entertaining and offered him some advice. He told him that the Kage Bunshin he enjoyed to employ so much could pass along information back to the original after being dispelled. He whooped in glee, now know that training would be a snap.

At one time, he used his Kage Bunshin to help accomplish multiple tasks at once. This floored Jenny, as she had never heard of such a spell before, much less one that could be cast without the use of an incantation or the aide of a wand or some kind of medium.

She asked him about it and he gladly told her that it wasn't magic, just a jutsu. She remembered what jutsus were from when he told her and Carwess about his world. He explained as best he could about chakra and its uses. To show her, he walked straight up her office's wall and stood on the ceiling. She was stunned, but also awed by the applications and usefulness of such things. He offered to teach her sometime, which she expressed interest in.

When it was time to go, Jenny handed him a small bag of coins, knowing that he had none of the currency of their realm. He tried to tell her that it wasn't nesscessary, but she insisted. She told him that he was a great help and it was the least she could do, so he relented.

Naruto walked into the tavern and quickly found himself a seat. He took in the surroundings and found them quite nice. After a few moments, a waitress made her way over to him and smiled.

"Hey there, cutie. What can I get for you?" She asked him playfully, making him blush oh so easily. He was about to ask her for some ramen, but realized that they might not know what ramen is.

He broke down and ordered a plate of mutton with some mead. The pub-goers took in the sight before them. The boy they saw was no more than 13, had on an obnoxiously bright orange and blue jumpsuit with a red spiral in the back. He also had a pouch on his hip and a holster of some kind on his right thigh. He also had on curious looking sandals and a headband with a metal plate set on it that bore a spiral leaf insignia. For the women who saw him, the thought that his whisker-like marks on his cheeks were absolutley adoreable and made him look like a little fox.

Off in the corner of the tavern, Melissa and her two companions, Merrill and Genie, were taking a breather from adventuring missions in the pub that was their frequent haunt. Melissa was troubled by what happened during her revealing ritual. She recalled how that boy was reaching for her. She took it as a lecherous action and ignored the lethal wounds that he had and the blood on his outstretched hand.

She had told her two friends about what happened and they were keeping an eye out for him.

Merrill had her doubts about this mysterious boy Melissa was talking about. She did some digging around and no one fit the description of the boy in question. Looking like he did, he would have stood out like a sore thumb, but there was nothing about him. This kind of thing Merrill didn't like, not knowing what was going on.

Melissa sighed and wondered if she would ever meet her REAL hero when she caught sight of him. "It's that boy...What's he doing here?" She wondered.

Genie and Merrill followed her gaze to see a young boy in his early teens, somewhat short with golden blonde hair, crystal blue eyes, strange whisker-like makings on his cheeks, and his headband.

Genie studied him for a moment. "He doesn't look much like a fighter...or much of anything, at that. All I see is a scrawny, fashion challenged kid. He doesn't look all that dangerous, but the way he carries himself, he looks like he's at least recieved combat training." The hulking swordswoman said appraisingly.

Merrill decided to add her two cents in. "He looks like he'd be more at home in my trade, as a thief or a scout. He looks pretty limber and quick. That holster on his thigh must be some kind of weapon holster. But what kind of weapons does he have?" She wondered.

Back at his table, Naruto had just finished eating his lunch. "Hey, nee-chan! What's the damage?" He chirped cheerfully. The waitress giggled and told him. Naruto left his money and enough for a tip.

"Thank you! Come again, hon'!" She called out after him.

The trio followed him out onto the streets. "Now, on to that Magic whatchamacallit place." He told himself as he searched his hip pouch for something. He froze and fratically began to search his remaining pockets. "Aw, crap! The directions that Jenny-Obasan wrote down for me are gone! Now what'll I do?!" He cried in a panic.

"If he needs directions to get around, he's probably not from around here. A different country, maybe? That would explain his clothes." Genie suggested.

"He mentioned Cheif Priestess Jenny and the Magic guild...She wrote down directions, too. We should follow him and find out what he's up to." Melissa decided.

"Why are you so fixated on that runt, Melissa? It just doesn't make sense." Merrill asked, getting somewhat irritated.

Melissa's faced burned at the indignation she felt when he saw her in the nude and getting her yelled at by Lady Jenny. "Because...he ruined my revealing ceremony, saw me naked and got me yelled at by Lady Jenny! He also appeared out of nowhere and had this strange demonic aura to him. He could be dangerous!"

Genie just sighed. _'If he were really that dangerous, he probably would have destroyed this town by now. He's had over a week to do it and he's been laying low. There's something wrong with this picture...'_ The tall red head wondered.

Naruto was wandering aimlessly through the streets, trying to find his way when he bumped into a young womam about Koyuki-hime's age with bright red hair and teal eyes that hid behind glasses. She was carrying some rather cumbersome books that fell when they met. Naruto looked up and saw what he had done. "Oh, man! Sorry about that!" He apologised as he helped her gather the books again.

She looked at the boy curiously, then smiled. "It's okay. Thanks for helping me gather up my study books." She told him.

Naruto's ears perked up. "Study books? What do you study?" He asked, his natural sense of curiosity piqued.

For some reason, the curious and confused look on his face made him look like a cute little fox, and it made her chuckle. "I study magic at the Magic Academy. My name's Ila, by the way." She answered him, introducing herself in the process.

Naruto gave her one of his fox-like grins and replied, "I'm Naruto! Naruto Uzumaki!" He then realized what she said. "Wait a minute...You said Magic Academy, right? That's what I'm trying to find! I was told to find Old Man Carwess there, but I kinda lost the directions that Miss Jenny wrote out for me." He admitted, blushing with embarrassment.

"Well, if that's where you're going, I can take you there. I was on my way there myself." She told him.

"Awright! I've got an easier way to carry all that stuff!" He told her while bringing his hands up into a familiar (At least to him) cross shaped hand seal. _**"KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!!"**_ He called out. As he did, at least 5 identical copies of himself appeared in puffs of smoke.

Ila's eyes boggled at what she just witnessed._'No wand, no incantation and magical item...just that strange hand seal. That was amazing!'_ She thought. To further her surprize, he began to order his clones to pick up her books and carry them for her, like her very own caravan. "Shall we?" He asked her as he turned to her. She smiled and led the way to the Guild, her small gang of sherpas trailing behind her.

Around the corner, Melissa and her two companions saw what he did, too. "Impossible...How could he do that?!" The priestess gasped.

Merrill's thoughts echoed hers._'What the hell was that?!'_

Genie was thinking along more tactical lines. _'That could be useful in combat...You could technically be everywhere at once. If you could order them around like that, you could have your own squad...or even send them to scout for traps or ambushes...the possibilities are endless...' _The ever practical ex-merc marvelled.

Along the way to the guild, Ila's mind was flooded with question's about her new young friend. _'Who is this boy? If he can do that, I wonder what else he can do?'_ She wondered as she asked him a question. "Uhm, Naruto...right?"

"Yeah, Ila-neechan?"

"Where are you from? Why do you need to see Master Carwess...If you don't mind me asking?"

Naruto grew a bit uneasy at the question. Ila noticed his discomfort and quickly dropped the questions. "I'm sorry...I didn't know that it would make you so upset." She said apologetically.

"Naw, it's alright Ila-chan! It's just...hard to talk about." He replied, with a a slightly haunted look on his face. Ila definately noticed his distress. _'Poor little guy...He looks like it really bothers him. Maybe he'll open up later on, and I'll see if I can help him some.' _

Ila was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she bumped into a big, burly man with a bandana. "Hey...you bumped into me. Ain't 'cha gonna say yer sorry?" He asked her, leering at her lecherously.

Ila straightened herself. "I'm sorry about that...I was just lost in thought."

The man sneered at her apology. "Maybe I'll just take YOU for my apology. I think I'll have a pretty good time with you." He drawled out lecherously as he grabbed her arm.

"Hey! Let me go!" She yelled at him, trying to pry herself free, but his grip was firm.

"Nope...Yer gonna work off yer apology...with yer body."

Naruto had heard enough. Nobody does that to his friends and gets away with it. "HEY!! Leave Ila-chan alone...or else." He snarled at the man, who was easily 4 times his size.

Ila's eyes widened in fear, not for herself, but for the young boy she was with. "Naruto, no!! He'll kill you! I'll be alright!" She tried to tell him but was smacked to silence her.

"Heh...Whadda we got here? A little hero?" He guffawed.

That was the last straw. He gestured to his clones to silently surround the man. He then quickly flung a kunai at the man, forcing him to let her go. While he was distracted, Naruto was already in his face, smashing it with one hell of a right cross.

_**"U!!"**_

The punch knocked him back into three waiting clones, who slid in and kicked the man upward into another waiting clone.

_**"ZU!" "MA!" "KI!"**_

The already airborne clone finished off the odd combo with a vicious axe-kick to the man's skull, all but knocking him into sweet unconsciousness.

_**"NARUTO RENDAN!!"**_

Ila was amazed that such a boy could be so strong or fast, and that those clones could be used like that. She was driven out of her musings by Naruto asking her if she was alright. "Ila-chan!! Are you okay?! Did he hurt you?!" He asked her frantically.

"No, Naruto, I'm alright, thanks to you." The bespecticled girl told him as she leaned in close to her brave little knight, giving him a chaste kiss on his whiskered cheek.

Naruto just stood there, stunned, holding his cheek, and blushing from his head to his toes. To his memory, this was the thrid kiss he'd ever received in his young life, and all from very pretty ladies at that. The first was from Tsunade, the second from Koyuki-hime, and now, Ila-chan. She giggled at his blown fuse expression before dragging him and his stunned clones for towards the Guild.

In his head, the Kyuubi was laughing its head off at his hosts reaction. _**"Man, kit! You leave that hellhole of a village for a little while and you turn out to be a chick magnet! Being trapped in you and being here is sounding better everyday!"**_

_"Seriously? Am I hearing you right?"_

_**"Damn right, Kit! Way better than that village blaming you for every little thing that goes wrong and being chased around by those Akatsuki freaks. Speaking of being a chick magnet, back in our world, you had a couple of beauties following you..."**_

This was something Naruto HAD to scoff at. _"Yeah right...Every girl I knew either pined after that Uchiha fag or hated my guts, or both. You should know that by now. I swear, that rainbow-farting fairy prince had a harem that Ero-Sennin would have killed for, but he threw everything away for power and the Hebi-teme."_

_**"Don't sell yourself short, kit. Remember that princess in Snow Country?"**_

_"Yeah? What about Koyuki-hime?"_

_**"That vixen had a thing for you. I could smell it...her wants were practically being screamed out and she was a real looker. Don't even get me started on that Hyuuga girl...If she's this cute now, just THINK of how hot she'll look when she gets older. Just to make it better, that girl had the most massive crush on you, now there's this hot little red-head and that young vixen at the temple who kissed you."**_ The Kyuubi mentioned to him slyly. Naruto could have sworn that he FELT the fox waggling its eyebrows just like Ero-Sennin used to when he thought of something pervy.

Suddenly, thoughts of an mature, adult Hinata in very...provocative positions made him go weak in the knees.

_**"I KNEW you had it in you kit! Keep those images coming!"**_ The great demon giggled in a Jiraiya-like manner that was, quite frankly, disturbing. Dealing with one mega pervert on the outside was bad enough, but having one of equal proportions locked up inside of him was even worse.

_"I can't believe I'm even having this conversation with you..." _The young blonde muttered as he exited the mind scape.

The fox chuckled in amusement. _**"This is going to be sooo much fun..."**_ He cackled.

Back with the trio, they got their first look at the boy's battle capabilities. Merrill was somewhat impressed that a boy his size took out a full grown man at least 4 times his size without much effort. She knew that smaller people needed different tactics to take on larger opponents. His feint with the knife-like weapon he threw was a good move. It distracted his opponent and gave him the element of surprize, during which he closed in and started up that unique combo of his. She couldn't understand what "Rendan" meant, but she could guess at it.

This fight gave him a couple of points in Genie's favor. He was obviously set off by that thugs treatment of the girl he had befriended and he didn't hesitate to spring into action. That told her that he wasn't a coward and had a good sense of chivalry and honor. He also kept his cool in the fight and outfoxed his much larger opponent. She still, however, frowned on the fact that no sword was used. She felt that true battles were fought with swords, not with hands and feet like the boy had done.

Melissa watched the whole thing with a mix of emotions. In her mind, it wasn't very hero-like using that diversionary tactic, nor was fighting with your bare hands. She was still upset from when the blonde boy appeared in the middle of her ritual. Mylee's words echoed in her mind and she shook her head violently.

_'NO, NO, NO, NO!!! This scrawny little urchin can't be the hero I was meant to serve!!! This has to be a mistake!! He has a demon INSIDE of him for Mylee's sake!!'_

Naruto and his clones noted that the area of town was bit too seedy for his tastes. "Hey, Ila-chan?"

"Yes, Naruto?"

"Do you trust me?"

She was taken back by this question, but she thought back to how he stood up for her and protected her. He definately had her trust. "Yes...I do. Why?"

He picked her up in a bridal fashion and ran straight up a near by wall and onto the rooftops, his clones following along behind him. "Good! Just point out the way and we'll be there in no time flat!" He chirped cheerfully.

Again, she was floored by what new newfound friend had accomplished. He just ran UP a wall, carrying her, like it was the most natural thing on earth. She just pointed out a large complex of buildings on the outskirt of the town they were in. "Okay, then! And we're off!!" He announced as he began to leap from roof to roof with alarming speed.

The trio were all stunned by the two feats that the young shinobi just pulled. For once, Genie and Merrill had nothing to say, but Melissa just thought of the feats as demonic. _'No normal human could possibly do these things...'_ She thought.

Merrill just whistled. "Man, even I'd have trouble following him, let alone catching him. What IS he, Melissa?!"

"I can't really tell you, but I do know this...He can't be human."

"Don't you think you're exaggerating just a bit, Melissa?" Genie questioned.

The Priestess didn't answer her, as she was lost in thought. They all just deduced that they had probably seen the last of him for the day and they went their seperate ways for the evening.

_**OPHEN : MAGICIAN'S GUILD**_

Naruto and Ila landed in front of the gates to the of the Guild rather gracefully, surprizing and scaring the people nearby. He walked up to the gates when Ila tapped him on the shoulder, blushing rather heavily. "Um, Naruto? You can let me down now."

This time, it was Naruto's turn to blush and fluster. "Oh, ah...Sorry, Ila-neechan!" He stammered out as her quickly but gently set her down. She simply smiled at the bashful boy. "It's okay, Naruto. Thank you for being such a gentleman...carrying my things, defending me from thugs, acutally carrying me all the way here...You're going to be quite the catch when you get a little older." She teased him. The pretty red head giggled at his sheepish, but cute reaction to the praise. _'If you were older, I'd be coming after you myself! Most men twice his age can't even hold a candle to him and he's just hitting puberty! I can't wait to see what kind of man he grows into...'_ She thought to herself as she led him to her room to drop off her things, then she led him to Headmaster Carwess's study.

They arrived at the door to the great mage's study and knocked. "Who is it?" A gruff voice asked from inside.

"It's Ila, Headmaster! I have a young man named Naruto who wants to see you." She announced.

"Naruto?! Please, by all means come in! Come in!" The elderly mage beckoned in a much more friendly voice. They opened the tall double doors and entered the large room. "Ah! Naruto, my dear boy! Welcome! Please, have a seat." He said jovially directing the vertically challenged ninja to a comfortable looking chair by his large desk. "Ila, thank you for showing him here." He mentioned to her.

Ila grinned. "It was my pleasure, Master Carwess..." She replied as she told him the circumstances under which she met the young blonde. Carwess was pleased to hear that his assumptions of Naruto's character were proven to be accurate. "Naruto, I must thank you for protecting one of my students. You have done myself and the Guild a service."

"Aw...It was nuthin'. She was real nice and she was showing me the way here when I lost the directions Miss Jenny wrote down for me!" He replied in a cheerful manner with a matching grin that Ila found oh so adoreable.

Carwess, however, got down to business, but asked Naruto something first. "Naruto, do you trust Ila with your secret? I can vouch for her, but I want to get your permission first." He asked.

Naruto weighed his the decision carefully. _'Carwess-ojiisan and Jenny-obasan took it pretty well and Ila-neechan seems really nice...I think I can trust her. She reminds me of Shizune-neechan.'_ He thought as he came to his desicion. "I'll trust her." He declared. Ila grinned softly._'He trusts me? He's beginning to open up...'_

Naruto spend the next two hours explaining his life and his world...the violent world of the Elemental Nations and the shinobi. The young woman was shocked, appalled and enraged, and finally sullen.

She was shocked at how common some of the feats he showed today were in his world, since he was trained (by himself, mostly) to be a ninja. Next she was appalled and enraged that people would seal such horrifying demons into human beings to create weapons, sometimes driving the host insane like the boy named Gaara that he mentioned. Her ire was further aroused by the fact that Naruto himself was one of these _'Jinchuuriki'_, and suffered horribly due to it. He was an orphan from birth, never knew his parents or the love of a family, or even friends. The village that he was sacrificed to save treated him as if he were the demon itself and had beaten, ignored, and disparaged him at every opportunity. Even his birthdays were no exception, in fact they were worse.

Her heart truly went out to this boy, who had been through so much pain and suffering that would have broken so many others in his place, but he stayed strong through it all. She also pondered the final mission he undertook with his team before being sent here. He was willing to see the girl he loved be in the arms of another, just to see her happy. The red headed woman felt that his selflessness, honor and courage were astounding, and he wasn't even an adult yet. This boy will indeed be quite the catch once grown.

She did the only thing she could think of, and embraced the boy tightly. _'To think...all that and he's still such a little sweetheart. There's no way he could be a demon or anything so evil.'_

Naruto flinched when she moved towards him, but was surprized when she embraced him so tightly. "Y-you aren't afraid of me? You don't...hate me?" He asked her hopefully.

She pulled him away slightly and gave him a gentle kiss to his forehead. "Of course not." She told him softly as she continued.

"No demon would have defended my honor like you did, my brave little knight. I told you before, you're actually quite the little gentleman and if you were just a little older, I'd come after you myself, demon or no." Ila admitted to him slyly as she lightly touched the tip of his nose teasingly.

"But I'll settle for being your 'nee-chan' as you like to call me, my precious little brother." She finished by pulling his smaller frame in tightly.

Carwess sighed in relief as well as smiling in happiness. He was right to trust Ila with this and couldn't happier with the results. From what he knew of Ila's family life, she was an only child and her mother died when she was young. Now, she has all but adopted the young shinobi as part of her family, even with knowing of his past, condition and occupation. Ninja were somewhat like mercenaries for their kingdom, doing the dirty work from the shadows. Even this boy had blood on his hands from his enemies, and had seen loved ones die. It was a real sordid business, but he seemed to be as normal as one could be in that situation, he guessed.

Carwess cleared his throat to get their attention. "Naruto, I asked Jenny if she could send you down here so that I could talk to you about the seal that you bear. I was wondering if I could get your permission to examine and study it. In all of my years of reasearch and travels, I have never seen such a masterpiece."

"I-I don't know..." He stammered out.

"If you would like Jenny and Ila to be here with you, I can arrange for it." He told Naruto, trying to soothe the boy. The small grin he put on his face gave the mage his answer. He quickly composed a letter to Jenny, asking her if she would mind being present during the examination of the seal to help Naruto calm down, and gave it to one of his couriers to deliver immeadiately. "In the mean time, Ila, would you mind showing Naruto around the town and maybe get yourselves some supper? I have a spare dorm room that I can put him up in for the night while we wait for a response." He informed the newly created sister/brother duo as they headed out for the night.

The elderly mage sank into his chair with a grin. _'I'm truly happy for that boy. Now, Ila has practically claimed him as her brother, and is looking out for him. Jenny all but sees the boy as a nephew of sorts, maybe more. Suffice to say, things will get very interesting soon.'_

_**OPHEN : CITY STREETS**_

Night time fell on the city and its nightlife came out to play. Along one of the streets came a familiar trio, popping into their favorite pub for some ale and information on new adventure missions. Merrill went off to a corner of the pub to talk of one of her information contacts while Genie and Melissa ordered up the food and drinks.

A trio of squires from the castle spotted them and began to hit on them. The taller one came up to the table first and spoke. "Hey ladies...looking for come company?" He asked them, trying to be as suave as his inebriated state would let him. Merrill had come back to the table and was rather frank with them.

"Hey pal...Piss off!" The short thief barked at them.

His buddy decided to get bold and put his arm around her and copped a feel. "Aw, now don't that way..." He drawled out drunkenly. Genie had seen enough and decked the sauced squire back into the street via the window.

Meanwhile, Ila and Naruto had just arrived at the pub when they saw the Knight errant come sailing out of the establishment. "What the hell was that?!" The short blonde exclaimed. "I don't know..." Ila responded, but before she could turn around, Naruto had dashed off inside to see what was wrong.

Upon entering, he saw two similarly dressed men rounding on three women. One was a very tall and muscular woman with bronze skin, facial tattoos and and a rather imposing sword on her back that somehow reminded him of Zabuza and Kisame.

Another was a rather nimble woman closer to his height, but still talled than him. She closed in on one squire fairly fast and kicked him in his ribs, dropping him to his knees quickly. She looked like she could be a kunoichi with the way she moved.

The final one looked oddly familiar. She had on the same priestess robes as Jenny-obasan and all the nee-chans he met at the temple, and she was about the same age as Ila-neechan. She was standing back and letting the others do the fighting.

As he clambored through the crowd to get a better look, a bystander accidentally shoved the short blonde ninja into Melissa, face first into her robes and behind.

"Owwww...that hurt..." He grumbled as he turned his attention to the lady he bumped into. "Hey, sorry about that..." He started to apologize, but she slapped his hand away.

"STAY AWAY FROM ME, YOU LITTLE MONSTER!!!" She shrieked in fear as she scrambled to her two companions. The crowd started to murmur in response to what she called him. Some thought she was crazy, while others were on the verge of taking it seriously. Her two friends and the squires stopped fighting and stared right at him. "He tried to attack me!!" She cried to her teammates, who forgot about the squires and rounded on Naruto.

"H-hey...what's wrong?" He asked uneasily, not liking where this was going.

"NARUTO..." He heard Ila call for him until she caught sight of him and ran to his side. "NARUTO! Please, don't run off like that! You scared me!" She chided.

"Sorry about that, Ila-neechan...I just thought that something was wrong and wanted to see what I could do to help out." He related to her.

Melissa's eyes went wide with alarm. "Don't...stop!!! Get away from him!!" She called out.

Ila was just plain confused as to why she was reacting like that to Naruto...unless...

"What's wrong? He's just a kid." She replied.

"No, he's not!! He's a demon in disguise! I saw it myself when he appeared...his blood red eyes and sharp claws and fangs..." She yelled out.

Naruto's eyes went downcast, and his expression to one of sadness. "Not again...No...I was so close to starting a new life..."

Ila's eyes flashed in anger as others began to side with the Mylee priestess. _'I knew it...she knows about the demon, but not the whole story. I have to do something or she'll start a mob!' _She thought as her anger was rising in her gut.

"He is NOT a demon!! You don't know the truth...Its only sealed within him to restrain it and keep it imprisoned!"

Her impassioned speech did very little as the crowd began to draw near them. One of the squires grabbed Ila and yanked her out of Naruto's reach. "NEE-CHAN!!" He shouted out.

"NARUTO!! NO, LEAVE HIM ALONE!!"Ila screamed at them, but they took no heed of her words. The continued to converge on the young blonde boy as he took a defensive stance.

"Let Ila-neechan go, NOW." He growled at them as he let out some of his killing intent at the mob. Those who felt it began to buckle and sweat, but this only made them attack him. The squires lead the assault, opening up with multiple wild slashes with their swords.

As he parried the blows, he broke off and made some Kage Bunshin to help him out. Whipping out kunai, the small squad of Naruto's held their ground against their attackers. They were actually somewhat skilled, but due to his training, he was able to hold them off.

Merrill began to question if what they were doing was right or not. Merrill saw the lonely and sad eyes of the boy who was fighting for his life, and saw a reflection of herself years before.

"Melissa, this this is crazy! He's only a boy!" She protested aloud. She had seen her fair share of the mob mentailty from her days growing up in the streets. She never wanted to see that ugly side of humanity again. One of her best friends growing up was blamed for a small epidemic because he was different from everybody else and he was beaten to death for it. Now, the same thing was about to happen to this boy.

Genie, however, spoke her piece as well. "Merrill, we all saw what this boy could do. He can walk up walls, make tangible copies of himself...all of these without any sort of magical device or medium. If he isn't a demon, then he's still a threat. Once, a monster disgused as a child came to my village. We were unsure of how the child came to be there, but we welcomed it with open arms. One night a week later, the monster attacked and killed many people. Our warriors killed the beast, but the damage was already done. My mother was among those killed, and I won't stand by and watch it happen again."

Merrill couldn't believe what she was hearing. Genie was one of the most sensible people she knew and she was joining in on this madness. She could only hope that the boy could fight his way out of this.

The crowd's patience was now bone dry as they were being beaten back by a mere boy. The lead squire pulled Ila to himself and held his blade to her throat. "If you don't want this whore dead, demon, don't resist us. We'll get promoted to Knights if we take your head, monster." He sneered with greed in his eyes.

He then looked at Ila and realized that she was quite pretty and shapely as well. "Heh heh. I just might have to taste this girl. She doesn't look too bad and she looks like she might be good in the sack." He added with a leering gaze.

Naruto's rage was now boiling over as slight wisps of red began to swirl around him as he began to change. His eyes, once a clear crystal blue, were now a violent crimson. His slight whisker-like face marks were now very deep and pronounced. His spiky blonde hair was now more ragged and feral. He was now covered by a cloak of some kind of energy, with a peculiar tail-like appendage swaying behind him. Even his voice was now different.

_**"Let my nee-chan go...NOW. I won't let you hurt her!!"**_ He snarled at the mob, who were now beginning to back away.

Ila managed to break free from her captors and rushed to the small blonde's side once again. She fratically hugged him, begging him to calm down. "Naruto, no!! Don't do it! I'm okay! Please calm down...Come back to me..." She began to sob into his shoulder.

One of the squires grew tired to the drama and decided to put an end to everything by striking at Ila. Moving quicker than she or the squire could follow, Naruto intercepted the blow by taking it himself. The stab struck him in the exact same spot where the Chidori wound was still healing.

The squire scowled, but smirked after he saw who he hit. "So, you saved me the trouble, demon." He said cockily as he tried to pull the sword out of the boy to finish him off, but began to panic when Naruto grasped the blade and kept him from escaping.

_**"You tried to hurt my Nee-chan...I'LL KILL YOU!!!!"**_ He roared and he let fly with a Kyuubi-enhanced punch that connected with his face and caved it in, as well as turning him into a wall fixture on the building across the street. The man got lucky because the punch killed him instantly, because the impact with the wall would have been far more painful.

Slowly, the demonic aura died down as the boy's body went slack, like a puppet with it's strings cut. He slumped into Ila's arms as she felt a sickening wetness from his chest.

"Oh my god...No..." Her voice quietly quivered as she ripped open his jacket and lifted his shirt. There, staring back at her, was one of the most awful wounds she had ever seen, and it was bleeding heavily. She wasn't a medic, but she knew enough first-aid to check for vitals and try to stop the bleeding.

"It just won't stop...What's happening to him?!" She cried for the boy who in the span of a day had become one to the most important people in her life. The unfolding events stunned the crowd so much, that they started to back away.

Merrill couldn't stand it anymore. She rushed over to the fallen and dying boy and tried to staunch the torrent of blood that was rushing from the wound. She turned to Melissa in fury.

"Melissa! We need help! We're losing him!" She shouted as she ripped off the scaft she wore in her hair to make into a makeshift bandage.

Said priestess just stood there, shellshocked. "MELISSA!! For Mylee's sake, snap out of it!! We need your help or this INNOCENT boy will die because of the mob YOU started!!"

Genie was just as stunned. She had never seen Merrill get this upset. She looked at the wound and shuttered. It looked like the boy had been gored, run clean through, as if somebody had litterally punched a hole in his chest, just shy of his heart. The sword stab must have reopened the wound and made it worse. She remembered back to when he fought that brigand earlier. He hardly seemed injured.

Jenny and a small squad of priestesses had just now arrived at the source of the demonic outburst. She felt the burst and assembled a small team to come with her as quickly as she could manage. She looked around and found to her horror Naruto, once again bleeding profusely from the same wound he had before. It hadn't fully healed after all. What ever she thought was healing him was merely keeping him alive long enough to heal.

She looked over and saw Melissa, just standing there watching this boy die. She wanted to give her a thourogh reprimanding for neglecting her duties, but time was short. The other women who came with her were some of the people Naruto had befriended back at the temple. They swallowed their rage at whoever did this and set to work saving the boy's life.

Jenny was furious, livid. She couldn't believe what she was hearing from one of her own priestesses, and of her chosen hero, at that. The team spent two hours working on him, using one of the taverns tables as an altar to work with. Finally, he was out of danger. They managed to stop the bleeding and sealed up the wound. Ila helped them by chanting a presicely controlled fire spell onto one of Merrill knives and Merrill used the super heated metal to cauterize the wound.

Jenny walked over to the two and spoke to them in a gentle and thankful tone. "Thank you both so much. If you two hadn't done what you did, Naruto would be dead right now."

Merrill was troubled by all that happened that night. She wanted some answers to unravel this blonde mystery. "Lady Jenny, what can you tell me about him? He's not from around here, is he?"

Jenny shook her head sadly. "No...He isn't. I trust that Melissa has told you of how he came here, right?" Merrill nodded.

"Now, what I am about to tell you is the truth. You see..." The Head Priestess began to tell the story of the boy whose life was just saved. Merrill's head swam from all of the information she had just processed. She knew that the boy wasn't what he seemed, but this blew her previous perceptions out of the water.

_'He never chose his fate...He had to fight the world alone, but never gave in. Never knew his family, or any form of kindness or love. His hoped that his team would fill that gap, but that wasn't meant to be. His teammates despised him and his teacher couldn't give a rat's ass about him. One of the only people who saw any worth in him was killed during an invasion, during which he laid everything he had and was on the line to drive back a demon vessel like himself that had been driven insane by his demon, all for an ungrateful village who hated him just for living. He was willing to give his life, just to make a selfish girl happy. Why? Because he loved her, but she used him. He was loyal to a fault and she USED him. That BITCH...'_ Merrill recapped in her head, snarling at the last part. She just hugged herself, marveling at the kind of will power and inner strength it must have taken to face the world and still seem as happy-go-lucky as he seemed.

Genie also overheard the whole story. She heaved a heavy sigh as she took the time to analyize what she learned. The tall woman was a war veteran, but so was this boy. '_He fought off an invasion in his own village, and helped two countries get back on track, saving them. This boy is actually a hero on par with King Rijarl himself, but he was forsaken by his own people. He was intended to be a martyr, to die for a village that scorned him. I feel like such a fool...' _The hulking ex-merc thought miserably, hanging her head in shame.

Melissa, sadly heard only what she chose to hear. She now knew what ninjas were and some of the missions they had to accomplish. She knew of the boy's past, but coming from a noble house as she did, she just didn't understand how real life worked. "My hero is just some nameless street urchin?! A worthless orphan?!" She shrieked. "Why did Mylee do this to me, giving me a cold blooded killer like him as a hero?!"

Her rant was cut short not by Ila, Jenny, or even Genie, but by Merrill. "Stow it, Melissa!! I was just like him when I was his age! I grew up alone in the streets, too! Am I just as worthless!? Just because I didn't grow up with parents makes my worth as a human being so much less than yours?!" The young thief snarled in rage, tears beginning to form in her turquoise green eyes.

Jenny placed a calming hand on Merrill's shoulder as she stepped forward. "Melissa, I am deeply disappointed in you. I thought that you came to the order to better yourself, and yet, you still haven't really learned a thing about the real world. Class, lineage, social standing, these things are trivial in the real world. You won't find anything in your story books here in real life. Those missions were just the way things were. Some of those men who were assassinated were terrible people who all but ruined the lands they ruled. They dealt in slavery, illegal goods and drugs, and in children." She muttered the last part darkly. She highly frowned at the mistreatment of children for any reason.

Melissa was shocked that they were taking his side. She stormed off in a huff, but Merrill and Ila were going to tear off after her to give the snobbish priestess a piece of their minds. Jenny called for them to stop, however. "Chasing after her will do no good. The boy is her hero, weither she likes it or not. She will have to accept him, and the demon sealed away inside of him."

_'This is bad...The seal might be failing. I'll have to get Carwess to take a look at it as soon as possible. That letter said that Naruto requested that I be there for it. I guess that means he trusts me...'_

The city guard soon arrived on the scene. The guard captain walked up to Jenny. "Lady Jenny, is everything alright here?" He asked, but then caught sight of all the blood that came from Naruto and then to Naruto himself, laying on a table with two priestesses bandaging his wound.

"Is the boy going to be okay?" He asked again, this time with concern in his voice.

Another guard member spotted the dead squire embedded in the wall across the street and began to ask questions. Merrill stepped up and told them it was self-defense as the squire and his two cronies attacked first. Naruto was only defending himself and Ila and the reason he was currently bleeding so badly was that he took a sword stab that was meant for the young woman from the dead man.

Jenny let out a sigh as she confirmed what was said. "Yes...A near-fatal wound was aggrivated and re-opened along with a direct blow from a sword, but we managed to stop the bleeding in time, thankfully. He's going to be okay if he can just rest enough to heal that wound of his."

"Well, I could lend you a couple of my men and we could carry him where ever he lives if you could show us the way?" He offered.

"Thank you, Captain. Could you take him to the Mylee shrine? My priestesses and I will escort you there." She thanked the guard captain as he called for a stretcher team.

As the team carefully loaded the boy onto the stretcher, two items fell from his pouch. Jenny walked over and picked them up. They were pictures, two of them. One had four people, including Naruto. One was an older man with long and spiky white hair, red lines under his eyes and a massive scroll on his back. Another was a woman with blonde hair and honey colored eyes. There was something about her that didn't add up, like she was more than she seemed. She also had a hand on Naruto's shoulder. The last was a young woman had short black hair and had a kind smile on her face, as well as holding a pig in her arms.

The other picture had four people as well. One was Naruto again. There were two other children in it, one boy and one girl. The boy had jet black hair that stuck up in the back and had a scowl on his face. The girl had bright pink hair and had a wide smile. The adult in the picture had silverish hair that stood straight up and gave one the mental image of a scarecrow. He wore a headband like Naruto and the other two kids did, but slid down over his left eye. He also wore an olive green vest of some kind and his visible eye gave her the damnest impression that he was smiling.

She put them into a pocket in her robes as she and her team began their trek back to the temple. "Wait!" Ila called out to them, causing them to stop.

Jenny took in who she was. "You must be a student at the Sorcerer's Guild, right?"

"Y-Yes, I am."

"Good. Can you let Carwess know what happened?"

"Yes, of course! I was going to do that anyway! I'll go and tell him right away!" The red head replied, sprinting off to tell the master mage what happened to Naruto. Jenny was a little concerned about her going alone, but Merrill's sudden offer put her fears at ease.

"I'll follow her and make sure nothing happens. If the kid got that upset when he thought she was going to be hurt, just imagine what'll happen if she did while he was down?"

Jenny could see the logic in that. If his power spiked that badly then, there was no telling what may happen if Ila wasn't there to calm him down. That girl was something of a blessing, she prevented a complete catastrophe by become a calming influence on the boy. _'From what it sounded like, he sees her as his big sister...It's actually kind of cute.' _She reasoned as they continued off into the night.

Merrill and Genie stood at the door to the tavern, wondering what to do about Melissa until Genie spoke up first. "I think we should give her some time to cool down before talking to her about this. We should also get to know the kid as a person before making any judgements. Agreed?" The tall swordswoman asked her shorter and younger friend and teammate.

Merrill sighed and replied, "Agreed. I'll reserve my judgement, too. But, I'll tell you this much. I grew up on the streets. I was an orphan just like him and I had to bring myself up in the same way. If Melissa comments on orphans like that again, I won't be able to hold my temper." The small thief promised before heading off in the direction Ila ran in, easily catching up with her. Genie sighed again, then began her trek to her cabin on the outskirts of Ophen. What happened tonight had given her much to think about.

_'I nearly commited an unforgivable sin...I hope that the boy can come to forgive me.'_

_**SORCERER'S GUILD**_

Ila made it to the Guild and went straight to Master Carwess's study. Merrill, who was tailing her for her safety, had to turn back at the guild's entrance and go home, her mission accomplished. She ran through the halls completely blowing off Master Foltess's rantings about running in the halls, and threw open the doors, rushing up to his desk. Carwess was about to reprimand her when he saw the panic written clearly on her face and saw that Naruto wasn't with her.

"Ila, what's wrong? Did something happen?" He asked, worry and dread seeping into his words as he saw some splotches of blood on her clothes.

"Master Carwess!! Something...something happened to his seal!! For a brief moment, I felt this awful, heavy force coming from Naruto!" She told him as she recounted the events that happened at the tavern. The old master mage's brows furrowed in thought and worry.

_'There's no doubt...He must have accessed that demon's power on his own. To his credit, he used it to protect Ila, who he thought was in danger. I'll have to talk to Jenny at once.'_ He surmised inwardly.

"Ila, would you please accompany me to the Mylee Temple? We are going to analyize that seal and try to make sure nothing has gone wrong." He told her in a commanding tone, which she obeyed without a second thought.

_'Hang in there, Naruto. Big sister is coming with some help.'_ The red headed young woman thought to herself as they geared up and headed out.

_**MYLEE TEMPLE**_

30 minutes saw them inside the temple. Naruto's wounds had been attended to and he was stablized. The medics nearly lost him on the way there, but he managed to keep fighting and stayed alive. Carwess looked over at his one time partner and had never seen such a look of concern and worry on her face before. The priestesses who worked on him were also very concerned for the boy, who in the span of a week, had become something of a loveable little brother to them. To Jenny, who had never had children of her own, he knew she was growing attached to the boy in a maternal sense.

Ila had rushed off to Naruto's side, guilt building in her stomach. _'He did this...for my sake. He probably knew the risk he was taking, but he did it anyway. I should have done more...I should have helped him...'_She lamented as she held her new baby brother's hand.

Carwess shook his head. "I guess this is as good a time as any to examine that seal. " He reasoned.

"Ila, would you mind helping me? Think of it as some extra studies in the sealing arts and being able to help young Naruto at the same time." He proposed to his student as he made preperations to check the seal.

After an hour's worth of prep time, work and coordinating with the priestesses for support, Jenny and Carwess began their investigation of the Shiki Fuuin, by entering the seal themselves.

_A/N: Naruto's really been through the ringer, hasn't he? At least he's found people to latch on to in this new world, people who know of his burden, but accept him completely, with Ila claiming him as family and even jumping to his defense. Jenny is quickly developing a maternal bond with him, the kind that he'd longed for with Tsunade, but was too scared of chasing her off to admit to her. A good portion of the priestesses have seen the real Naruto and love him for it. I will to return to Konoha is wavering more and more with each passing day as he finds more acceptance here in Ophen. That's all from me, just felt like explaining myself._


	4. To Walk In His Shoes

_**Chapter four, ready to roll. I had to do some modifications to this chapter and I hope you all will like it. As you may or may not know, I have no beta to assist me and I have been doing all of my own proofreading. Anyway, the funeral is over and as they say, "The show must go on". (Que song by Queen by the same name, The Show Must Go On.) **_

_**Naruto is doing what he does best, getting into trouble, even in a different world. When I left you before, Jenny and Carwess are attempting to research the seal, but they will get far more than they bargained for. They will learn what Naruto's life and world was like though his eyes and memories, EVERY memory.**_

_**INSIDE THE SEAL**_

Carwess and Jenny found themselves inside of some kind of sewer, in ankle deep waters walking down a dark corridor that led to Naruto's inner mind. Soon enough, they felt the same heavy presence as before and Jenny was homing in on it. After a few moments, they could hear talking.

The voice was a deep, basso voice that sounded like it came from something huge. It sounded like it was chiding or chastizing someone, so they went to investigate it. Once at the source, they found an enormous gate with a tag of sorts on it.

Behind the gate, was the biggest creature they had ever seen or heard of in their lives. It made the dragon that Rijarl fought, Krish, look like a iguana. _'This Yondaime person must have been very powerful and skilled to have defeated and sealed such a massive beast.'_ Jenny thought as the great beast noticed them.

At it's feet, Naruto lay there surrounded by a small cloud of red energy, seemingly in a stasis. _**"You foolish kit..."**_ It growled._** "You drew upon my powers in your weakened state and caused that wound made by that tainted Chidori to be reopened along with getting yourself stabbed by that lowly worm of a human. You have a knack for causing trouble, kit."**_

Carwess wondered about what the hell a Chidori was, but filed it away for later. "I am to assume that you are the demon held by the seal?"

The Kyuubi studied the two humans for a moment. He recognised the two spiritual energy signatures, one of them still had a lingering presense inside the kit's body from healing him. _**"You are correct, human. I am the Kyuubi no Kitsune, or translated into your tongue, the Nine-Tailed Fox."**_ The mighty demon answered them in its booming voice, bringing its full body into view. _**"Am I to assume that you wish to study the seal? I would tread lightly if I were you...**_" It warned, telling them the nature of the seal and its ultimate purpose.

Carwess was amazed by the complexity and the calculations that went into such a formula, but such brilliance came at a ghastly price. The seal was meant to empower Naruto, as it served as a limiter and safety restraint while increasing his resistance and tolerance of the potent chakra. They understood that too much too soon would kill him, and due the demon's soul being linked to Naruto's, it would die, too. In light of this, the demon used it's chakra to speed up Naruto's healing to an astonishing rate, allowing him to endure blows that would kill anyone else, however, he would still feel every bit of the pain. Some of the side effects of this was that his stamina was beyond human, his reserves were massive and he was stronger than some adults despite his young age.

When Jenny asked what could have made such an awful wound on Naruto, the Kyuubi showed them the battle between him and Sasuke Uchiha. They got to see their first fight between shinobi and witnessed some of the power that a jinchuriki was capable of in combat. Also, to their horror, they saw Naruto die twice, just to revive again and continue to fight.

_'By Mylee...The power of that demon turns the boy into a berserker...When he's like that, he's near unstoppable.'_ Jenny thought, her gaze transfixed in horror.

His memories came at them unbidden, giving them the answers to his mysterious past and world. What they saw of Naruto's early childhood made Jenny's stomach turn. She had no idea that his life was this bad, or that being a jinchuriki could curse a person so much. They saw his Academy days and that the instructors all but ignored him, except to punish him for something he didn't do. The behaivor of the villagers was abhorrent at best, ranging from neglect to outright abuse, both emotional and physical. The two former teammates were in awe once again at the mental and inner strength of this boy to endure as much as he had and still function normally

_'Doing such, vile things to a mere child...It's a miracle that he can still display any kindness or affection. He must have unfathomable strength of will and spirit to endure the hatred and suffering as he did. I would have broken long ago under such treatment. Their willful ignorance and cruelty will follow them to the grave. When standing at heaven's gates, they will have to answer for their sins.' _Jenny thought inwardly, her fists clenched in rage. As mentioned before, she abhored the abuse of children, but what she had seen truly sickened her. She now felt even more protective over the boy and felt even angrier at Melissa, who was, through sheer ignorance, following in the footsteps of those villagers.

Next up was the memories of his team, Team 7. Their first impression of Kakashi was that he was a lazy oaf who could barely be bothered to pay attention to his students. Carwess had trouble comprehending the logic in throwing three fresh kids with no experience into a dangerous mission such as the Wave Country mission. Next, he barely taught his team anything, but took the Uchiha boy and gave him private training, ignoring his other students. He palmed Naruto off onto someone who hated him, a truly underhanded thing for a teacher to do.

_'If we ever had an instructor like this in my Academy, they would be fired in a heartbeat. There is no excuse to favor one student at the expense of another.'_ Carwess thought with a scowl. During his days of teaching magic and magical theory, he made sure to make time for his students, leaving none behind if he could help it.

Next was Sakura. The pink haired girls treatment of Naruto was horrible. He was just trying to be nice or helpful, but she always either threw it back in his face or berated him, then hit him. She had the nerve to call him useless, but in reality, she was the burden, one that nearly got Naruto killed on more than one occasion. During the battle with the one called Gaara, Naruto unleashed a massive power, summoning a huge toad and fought the demon-possessed youth, matching him blow for blow. She then had the nerve to ask Naruto to bring that Sasuke brat back to her when he betrayed their village. Jenny knew better. The girl was using his devotion for her, playing him for all he was worth.

_'That boy had done nothing but be kind and supportive to her...Who gave her the right to treat him with such curelty? This Sakura girl had better pray that we never meet.' _The normally calm woman seethed with anger. To her beliefs, to use someone as honest and earnest as Naruto had proven himself to be was truly cruel and not worthy of mercy.

They came to Sasuke next. The boy was arrogant, rude, vain, and selfish. He believed that no one was greater than his clan to the point of having a superiority complex. This wasn't helped any by their other teammate and the sensei's preferential treatment. It also seemed as if as Naruto grew in power and skill, the more Sasuke was jealous. This came to a head in the battle that landed Naruto in their world. The words the boy spoke were very disturbing and he thouroghly disgusted the two.

_'This boy...He was an incident waiting to happen. Arrogance can turn people into monsters, this is only further proof of that fact. This boy was spoiled beyond belief, and it still wasn't good enough. I had better not run across him, for his sake.'_ The elderly mage growled inwardly. Arrogance was always a pet peeve of his. It could turn the greatest of heroes into the greatest of fools in a heartbeat is left unchecked.

Next was the old man that Naruto mentioned, the Sandaime. Naruto truly saw the elderly leader as a grandfather in his life. He was one of the only people in the boy's life that offered any kind words to him. Then there was Iruka, the only man to willingly teach Naruto, who he saw as an older brother.

_'This Sarutobi really does remind me of Carwess, very much so. Then there is this Iruka, he seems like a very patient and nice young man. I would love to meet them, if it were possible, but Sarutobi is dead.'_

Then there was the two Sannin, Jiraiya and Tsunade. The white haired pervert was almost irresponsiblity incarnate, but he taught the boy two vital skills and entrusted him with two legacies of their legendary Yondaime, whom he had taught as well. Naruto saw him as some what of a crazy uncle, but as family none the less. However, there was the fact that he used Naruto's hard-earned money for his supposed "reasearch", which was merely chasing pretty women.

_'Honestly...A man his age should have more restraint than that, especially if he is going to be a role model for a child.'_ Jenny huffed. She was grateful that Naruto hadn't picked up on his habits from being around him so much. Boy's his age were very impressionable.

Tsunade was a drunkard and a horrible gambler, not to mention foul tempered, but she cared for Naruto like no one else, going as far as to risk her life to protect him when he saved her. Naruto saw her almost as a mother, but he never told her in fear that he would drive her away. She had a reason for her attitude before, albeit a flimsy one. All of her loved ones save Jiraiya and Shizune were all dead, killed in action.

_'She's led a hard life as well. Living with that kind of grief can really tear away at a person, but it looks like Naruto was beginning to heal her wounds. Sadly, due to her position of authority, any affection from her would be seen as favortism. I can tell from the look in her eyes that she deeply cared for the boy. She may rest easy, for I will gladly care for the boy.' _Jenny silently vowed. She saw some of herself in Tsunade, having lost may loved ones in the past. This just made one more thing they shared, their affection for a certain blond haired shinobi that had somehow wriggled his way into their hearts without them knowing.

Shizune was a very kind young woman who Carwess thought had a lot in common with Ila. It made sense that Naruto latched onto Ila in the same fashion, claiming her as his big sister. This woman was very doting on him, making sure he ate right and took care of himself.

_'This young woman and Ila are vastly similar in personality traits. It only makes sense that the lad latched on to her in such a fashion. She seems like a very caring and responsible young woman.'_

Teuchi and Ayame Ichiraku, who ran the ramen stand where Naruto would eat at all the time, had all but claimed the boy as family, allowing him to work up a monumental tab and work it off bit by bit. They were also the only place where Naruto could get any food without it being poisoned, overpriced, spoiled, or being chased out. The daughter, Ayame, was firecely protective of the boy even threatening to kill once. This went against her kind nature, but she was willing to do so for the sake of the boy.

_'May Mylee bless this family for the good deeds they have done. I'm sure that their kindness meant the world to Naruto.' _The priestess thought as she sent out a prayer for Mylee to bless the Ichiraku's with good fortune for their kind hearts.

Naruto's memories came to another young woman, by the name of Anko Mitarashi. At first glance, she dressed rather provocatively, and was very loud and brash. But upon closer inspection, they found a very stout-hearted woman who cared for Naruto down to the very core of her being and would fight to the death to protect him. Jenny could tell from the look in her eyes when she regarded the young demon vessel.

_'Such a strong young woman...many of my young priestesses could stand to learn a thing or two from her. I would very much like to meet her, as she seems to be a very interesting person.'_ Jenny mused. She knew of a few young women who could learn from such an example, Melissa being at the top of the list.

Finally, they came to Hinata. Jenny thought the girl was blind at first, but remembered Naruto describing to her that a clan in the village had eyes like that. She also thought the girl was overwhelmingly cute, but extremely bashful. The two could tell that the girl harbored a massive crush on Naruto, but lacked the confidence to tell him.

_'It's too bad that this girl was so shy and timid. She really does seem like a very gentle soul and she really seems to like him. It makes sense that Naruto wouldn't have seen it, being used to so much hatred and cruelty being aimed at him that he wouldn't have expected it.' _Jenny mused. Hinata reminded her of a friend she had when she was young.

They also came across his other battles and people he'd met. Orochimaru was simply as evil and twisted as one could get. The fallen Hebi Sennin had an obsession with youth and perfection like most who abused magic.

_'This Orochimaru reminds me of a few sorcerers that I've had to face in the past. They always want the same thing, to become all powerful and to live forever. I've seen some sick and twisted things, but living from body to body like that is a evil as one could get. Desecrating the dead is a sin that cannot be forgiven.' _Carwess mused. He had dealt with people of this sort before, from over-confident sorcerers to

Gaara was just like Naruto, but was a different side to the same coin. The poor youth never asked to have a demon sealed within him, but again the power-hungry ambitions of another caused immense suffering in one who was innocent. Zabuza and Haku were a tragic pair, misunderstood and just on the wrong side. Zabuza sought to free his country from a tyrant, but ultimately failed. Haku was a very kind young man, even if it WAS hard to tell his gender. He never aimed to kill.

There were many more. The desperate fights he'd seen and fought were of legendary proportions, but the boy was ridiculed when he got back home. His battle with Gaara was one that could have literally shook the heavens. They now completely understood and learned the mystery that was Naruto Uzumaki as they left the seal and came back to the real world.

_**MYLEE TEMPLE ALTAR ROOM**_

Ila and the other two priestesses providing support, waited anxiously for their respective masters to come about. Soon, they got what they were waiting for as Jenny and Carwess both came around, trying to shake the proverbial cobwebs from their minds. Once they got their orientaion back, however, their visages took on looks of sadness.

"Master Carwess, what's wrong?" Ila inquired. _'What could have happened in there to make them wear such forlorn looks?'_

Carwess regarded his student wearily before answering. "Remember how Naruto told you of his life? We saw the truth...and what Naruto told us was just the beginning. He just glossed over some of the most horrifying things I've ever seen, things that happened to him. Things that...he would feel ashamed to tell us about, embarrassed." He finished with a growl. He still couldn't, for the life of him, fathom how any human being could treat a child so cruelly and horribly.

Jenny sighed. _'The demon inside of him was more civil than most of the people in his home village. Those people were a true disgrace...It is no small wonder that the boy clings to his precious few loved ones with such tenacity and fierce devotion.'_

Ila was puzzled as well as concerned about the hostile reactions to Naruto's memories. "What could you have possibly seen in his mind that could make you so angry?"

"Ila, when he is ready to tell you, he will tell you. Jenny and I won't tell him that we know, because if he would have wanted us to, he would have told us." The elderly magician replied as he rested up for a moment and pondered what he learned of Naruto's native language and text. He had a new wealth of reasearch material into these new seals, as well as chakra.

Ila turned to Jenny, "Lady Jenny, could I stay here with him? He might want a friendly face when he wakes up."

"I don't mind, Ila. Good night." She replied as she turned for the door. She was tired and it had been a long night for her, so she retired to her bed chambers for the night.

_**KONOHA**_

It has been 3 months since Naruto had 'died' and was laid to rest, but for those who mourned him, their grief never really died down. The council's decision on Sasuke's punishment was made public and caused a massive outcry from a majority of the shinobi population. He was sentenced to only 3 months of probation and wasn't allowed to leave the village for 6 months.

The next outrage came from the newly proposed Uchiha breeding program that the council had pushed through without Tsunade's approval. They had steadily stripped her of many of her political powers and reduced her to all but a figurehead. This program called for all young women from 13 to 25, kunoichi or not, to register to be an Uchiha bride and that Sasuke would pick his top five choices to restart his clan immeadiately.

The biggest cry of rage came from the shinobi clans and from the girls and senseis of the Rookie Nine and Team Gai. Ino and Sakura had shed their infatuation with the brooding teen, seeing him for what he really is, a cowardly traitor who spat on everything it meant to be a Konoha ninja, and who murdered a kind-hearted boy who only wanted to save him from himself in cold blood. Tenten saw the Uchiha as a disgusting excuse for a human being and wanted nothing to do with him. Hinata wanted to kill Sasuke for what he did, and she wanted to do it slowly.

After she was done crying, she made a sudden and frightening transformation from a timid little girl to a deadly serious kunoichi, somewhat similar to Anko Mitarashi, except less sultry and psychotic and more angry and dark. She still had a kind side to her, but it was warranted less and less with each passing incident with the villagers. She actually put a Uchiha fangirl in the hospital with multiple fractures and ALL of her tenketsu closed, HARD. This incident was started by a girl from the Academy named Ami, who came to call the Hyuuga heiress a 'demon whore' and that she should have died along with the dobe. This led to the girl never being able to use chakra ever again.

Sakura and Ino had similar things happen to them. Sakura had quite a few run-ins with her parents, who were still trying to get her into the breeding program to further their names and reputations. She finally told them that she would rather join Naruto in death than help Sasuke bring about his cursed spawn.

In a rage, her father, a civilian struck out at her but forgot one VERY improtant fact : Sakura is a trained kunoichi and could fight as such. The very punches that she used to use on Naruto were now being used to avenge him as she knocked her father out for 3 days. As a result of that, her parents kicked her out of the house and disowned her. Within an hour, Ino and her parents heard about it and took her in.

Ino had to deal with a lot of cold shoulders and scalding remarks from a lot of former friends that were still fangirls and Uchiha supporters. Even people who were once very good friends of her family had turned against her, calling her a traitor for turning down the marriage to the Uchiha, or Lord Sasuke as many of the civilian population had come to call him. She was called things like 'whore' and 'demon slut', but she was once accosted by a rather burly man who was anything but polite.

"Well, if it ain't one the Kyuubi sluts." He sneered at her, leering at her budding figure. "I might just take a crack at 'cha, make a woman outta ya before that Uchiha kid does."

Before the man could even lay a hand on her, an enlarged fist lanced out of nowhere and smashed the man into a nearby wall. The owner of said fist? None other than her teammate Chouji, with Shikamaru and Asuma-sensei standing with them. "Thank you, Chouji, Shika, Sensei..." She whispered. Asuma dragged the man off to the jails and her teammates escorted her home.

Tenten was the only Genin kunoichi with no clan backing, as she was an orphan like her teammate Lee. She was threatened with being stripped of her shinobi licence and status for refusing to register until Gai stepped in. He announced that he was adopting Tenten, thus keeping her safe from the drafting of the program due to his strong disapproval. She had never been so grateful for her sensei, ever. Over the past 2 years, she had begun to her team as her family, with Gai-sensei as the proud patriarche. This adoption only solidified her belief in that.

Hana Inuzuka was approached by the elders Homura and Danzo about her failing to enlist in the breeding program, but she shot back with the fact that the Uchiha disgusted her and she'd sooner kill herself than carry his children within her womb. She began to sequester herself in the vetrenary clinic where she worked.

Anko was the only one of the jounin females that was in the age range of the program, but she fought regestraition tooth and nail. At one point, she was willing to become a nuke-nin to escape it, but Tsunade offered an alternative.

"You wanted to see me, Lady Tsunade?" Anko inquired, wondering what she could have been called in for if it wasn't a mission.

"Ah, yes Anko. I do. It has come to my attention that you do not wish to be drafted into the Uchiha revival program. In fact, when Elders Homura and Danzo approached you about it, you were very...adamant about not wanting anything to do with it." The blond Sannin recanted with a chuckle.

Anko blushed a bit when she remembered her harsh words, but steeled herself. "I refuse to carry that little bastard's seed for what he did to my otuoto...I'd rather burn in Hell for all eternity that let anything from him touch me." The Snake Kunoichi snarled, her hazel eyes going cold as ice.

"Easy there, Anko. I didn't call you here to force you into the program, but to offer you a way out of it. I noticed from your record that you were on Naruto's protection squad when he was little. You personally took the job very seriously and even guarded him with your life." She commented, setting down a file with her name on it.

Anko's eyes took on a far away look and began to water slightly at the memory. "Yeah...I was. That little brat grew on me and before I knew it, he was improtant to me. I really cared about him, y'know? You just don't forget things like that." She told Tsunade as tears began to fall.

Tsunade smiled. She got the answer she was looking for. "I can tell that you loved him like family. I loved him, too. I never had any children of my own, but I always wondered what it would have been like to be a mother. I was planning on adopting Naruto once I got completely settled down here in the village, but that rat bastard Uchiha killed him before I had the chance. But since you loved him the same way and you need help, I would like to adopt you into the Senju clan. This will render you immune to the draft."

Anko could barely believe what she was hearing. " A-Are you serious, Hokage-sama? Y-you really want me...as part of your family?" She asked, hoping against hope that what she heard was the truth.

"Yes, I meant it. Welcome to the family, Anko-chan." The beautiful Sennin told her warmly.

"T-thank you, Hokage-sama..." She whispered quietly, but Tsunade stopped her.

"Now, now, Anko-chan...I just adopted you."

Anko's smile got even wider, almost matching the smile of the boy she saw as her baby. She closed her eyes and let a tear escape down her cheek. "Gomen, Tsunade-Okaasan."

Shizune heard the whole thing and came in to embrace her new 'sister'. Anko was just happy to finally have a family, but wished that her little blonde gaki could be there with them.

_'Gaki, I hope you can see this...We still love you and we'll never forget you.'_

Tsunade and Jiraiya couldn't have been more proud of the way the teams and clans were banding together to fight this unfair ruling and the council's tyrannical ways. Jiraiya was using his contacts with the Daimyo's offices to have the Uchiha's punishment changed to life imprisonment and to abolish the breeding program, but it was slow going. The only reason he could see for this was that Danzo's Root operatives were impedeing progress and that the old warhawk had his claws in the Daimyo's court and council somehow.

On another note, the Akatsuki had seemed to switch objectives. They seemed to abandon their search for the Jinchuuriki and had begun a search and destroy campaign against Orochimaru, already destroying several bases and killing many of his Oto-nin. Madara was ruthless in his campaign against Orochimaru, completely obliterating Rice Field Country to try and flush him out. There were some survivors, like a handful of ninja from a clan called the Fuuma, who defected to Konoha and were awarded amnesty by Tsunade.

Due to lax security where the Uchiha was concerned and Danzo's ROOT ANBU making sure the security stayed that way, Kabuto had managed to spirit Sasuke away to Orochimaru. Sasuke left the village willingly, again, in hopes of fulfilling his ambition of killing Itachi and subjugating Konoha, taking what he believed was rightfully his. However, Orochimaru was forced to have them change their locations due to the Akatsuki being hot on their heels, out for retribution. Itachi was currently pursuing the pair in order to finish what he started the night of the Uchiha Massacre, as a penance for failing to protect the Yondaime's Legacy.

The council was now calling for Tsunade's resignation from her position and wanted to appoint Danzo as the Hokage, but Jiraiya, along the Wave and Snow regents, had managed to come through for the beautiful blond Hokage. Jiraiya escorted the two leaders to the capital and contacted the Daimyo personally, getting him to halt the council's actions. To add to that, the Fire Daimyo stated that as long as he was regent, he would never accept Danzo as the Hokage due to his war-mongering ways and had stripped the civilian council of most of its political power.

After his failed bid for power in the village, Danzo flew into a rage and attempted to take the office of Hokage by force, calling his ROOT shinobi in to kill Tsunade and all who opposed him. One thing he forgot to take into account was that over 90% of the shinobi in the village had thrown in their support to Tsunade since the funeral, which led to a humiliating defeat for Danzo's ROOT forces. After his defeat, he quickly and silently fled the village.

He travelled until he caught up to Orochimaru and struck up an alliance with the demented Hebi Sennin. His ultimate goal was to gain control over Konoha and eventually the world. The bandaged traitor had no intention of backing Orochimaru and was only biding his time until he figured out the secret behind the insane man's Immortality Jutsu, making him useless and enabling him to take over Sasuke for himself.

Things seemed stable for now and the upheaval caused by the attempted defection had died down for the most part. Everyone seemed to carry on with their lives, but never forgot about the one who died on that mission to make it a success. His apartment was sealed off and his surviving belongings were sealed up in a large storage scroll that Tsunade kept in her manor, as a keepsake of the boy she loved with all her heart. These victories meant nothing to her if she couldn't have her loved ones there with her.

_'Dan, Nawaki, Grandfather and greatuncle, please take good care of Naruto for me until I get there.'_

_A/N: The end of another chapter. As previously stated, this chapter was much different before. Anyway, Konoha is still reeling from the aftermath of the defection attempt and Sasuke ended up leaving again, anyway. However, Orochimaru and Co. are being pursued by the Akatsuki. Now, even Danzo he joined up with the demented Snake Sannin in hopes of getting what he wants since he couldn't take it by force on his own. ROOT in Konoha is no more, the civilian council has been dealt with, thank to the combined efforts of Wave and Snow's rulers and Jiraiya. People have changed, too. Hinata is no longer the timid little doormat she was. Sakura and Ino have changed, too. The death of Naruto had changed many people, as the death of somebody close to any of us would._

_To answer some questions that some have asked, yes Naruto will still have his summons, but that won't be until a little later that he tries it. I'm also thinking about a little homecoming for him, along with a little 'east meets west' thing. Remember, the people where Naruto is now only know what Naruto knew, and have no idea that that things have changed. But what had happened in the past will still have dire consequences._

_On another note, REVIEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LEAVE REVIEWS IF YOU ADD TO YOUR FAVORITES!!!!!!!! I MUST KNOW WHAT I'M DOING TO PLEASE YOU AND WHAT YOU THINK!!!!!!!!!!!! _

_Ahem...Anyway, thanks for reading and I'll have another chapter up A.S.A.P!_


	5. Elves and Ghouls and Fangirls, oh my!

_Hey y'all! I'm back with another installment of the Rune Ninja chronicles. Now that the dust is beginning to settle both in Ophen and in Konoha, those affected are beginning to carry on with their lives. I hope that I wasn't too sappy with that last chapter, with all of the teams banding together like they did and with Tsunade adopting Anko into her clan. Here, we see how the same three months have passed by for Naruto and all that he's been up to. Enjoy!_

_**OPHEN**_

It had been 3 months since Naruto had arrived at the temple and he was beginning to get used to how things were done in his new world. He was now on a team of adventurers and was learning the art of the sword from one of his teammates. He climbed out of bed and stretched, thinking of all that he had been through.

_**FLASHBACK**_

_Carwess offered to teach Naruto how to use magic in exchange for his knowledge of his worlds texts and how to utilize chakra. He wholeheartedly agreed to the deal and threw himself into the magic lessons with gusto. Carwess and Jenny turned out to be quick studies and after two weeks, they mastered the tree climbing excercise and were working on how to use it to bolster their physical abilities._

_Carwess allowed him to have full access to the Guild's libraries, at least as much as a student would, even a magic wand with which to use magic. He sent waves of Kage Bunshins in there to learn everything he possibly could. Most of the professors there could only grin at the boy's natural curiousity and drive, some of which wanted to quoted as saying that he would go far and would make the Guild proud. However, one professer saw him as an outsider and an urchin. Master Foltess had a natural disdain for anyone or anything out of his sense of the ordinary and Naruto was as strange as they came. _

_Ila helped Naruto out wherever she could and helped him learn more about the world around him. She marveled more than once at how sponge like he was when it came to new information and how open he was to being taught. He seemed to follow her around like a baby chick and hung on her every word. Jenny thought that it was quite adoreable when she found the pair resting underneath a tree in the guild courtyard, the short blonde's head resting on her shoulder._

_She had introduced him to her father, who ran one of the biggest trading companies in the kingdom. He was a short, rotund man with the same red hair and green eyes his daughter had, with a friendly and boisterous personality to go along with it. She explained Naruto's situation and he accepted the boy without a second thought on the matter. He now had a nephew of sorts who knew all kinds of good jokes and pranks that the man absolutley loved. The two of them hit it off very quickly._

_To help keep up with his shinobi training, the Kyuubi gave him a little more advice. He taught him how to make weight seals in order to make himself some training weights. After a week of perfecting them, he applied them to a pair of bracers that he purchased from a merchant Ila introduced him to, a friend of her fathers. After a month of wearing them on his ankles and wrists, he noticed a difference in his strength and speed. This encouraged him to continue to wear the weights at all times during the day._

_Naruto also learned that the massive demon fox was a literal treasure trove of knowledge. He guessed that eating shinobi and assimilating their knowledge through the years had come in useful, after all. He began to build his jutsu library, starting with a few Katon jutsu that Sasuke used against him, then on to a few Suiton justu that he saw Zabuza use on his first real mission, on top of teaching himself the Shunshin to help him get around much easier. The great demon was secretly very proud of how quickly his host was adapting to his situation._

_He had a hard time finding work after what happened in the tavern. Rumors of him being a demon in disguise had begun to spread quickly through the streets, so few would hire him. The people who didn't see him as such either thought that the rumors were complete hogwash or didn't hear it yet. He did jobs at the tavern that he frequently visited such as a porter, waiter, and dishwasher. The owner loved having him around because he had an army-sized workforce, but only had to pay one of them, and the work was done quickly. _

_One of the waitresses, an older woman named Amy, was skepitcal of him at first due to the rumors, until one day a customer was drunk and decided to get a little too touchy with her. Naruto heard her from the kitchen and came out to see what the trouble was and found him groping the woman while she yelled at him to let go. _

_"Hey pal! Let her go!" He shouted at him._

_The man looked around to see who had the guts to tell him what to do and found a scrawny kid. "Beat it, brat! I ya don't..." He paused to pull out his sword. "I'll kill ya."_

_Amy's eyes widened in fear, not for herself, but for the boy who was standing up for her. "Don't do it, kid! He'll really kill you! Call the City Guard!"_

_Naruto's eye's narrowed as he came up with a plan and ran with it. It was similar to the plan he used to protect Ila when he met her. He launched a kunai he had hidden in his clothes at the man, but he was too drunk to dodge it and took it in his shoulder. The pain made him let the woman go and he launched his assault. Three Kage Bunshin kept his attention away from Naruto himself and another clone, steering him toward the tavern entrance while they powered up a low-powered Rasengan._

_When the Rasengan was ready, the clones stunned him and Naruto shoved the mini-hurricane into the large man's sternum, sending him spinning end over end through the tavern doors, across the street, and into a wall. _

_When the dust settled, Naruto was walking back to the kitchen to finish with the dishes he hadn't done yet when Amy stopped him by grabbing his wrist. "Wait..." She called to him._

"What?" He asked quietly without turning around.

_Her words were stuck in her throat. She was just as bad as some of the rumor spreaders, but he still risked himself to protect her. "T-Thank you..." She choked out._

_Naruto turned to face her and looked up at her with a grin. "You're welcome." He replied as he set back to work._

_The owner and the other waitress who liked Naruto, Tessa, watched the scene with awe and pride. They knew the boy couldn't be a demon or even evil. He was too nice a boy for that. _

_In between jobs and lessons, he still found time to train himself. The Kage Bunshin learning method was put through its paces as he refined his control. He felt himself getting closer to a one-handed Rasengan. He also worked on his Taijutsu using his clones and brushed up on his weapons and throwing skills. Little did he know, he was being watched during his training. _

_Genie and Merrill had been watching the boy train and work for the past couple of months inbetween adventure missions. Needless to say, they were becoming impressed with the boy. He was proving himself to be more and more the opposite of the nasty rumor mill started by Melissa, and now they wanted to start including him on their adventures. From what they learned that night in the tavern from Jenny, the missions he had been on were very similar to what they do. _

_They approached Naruto in a casual manner while he was training, but ended up spooking him. He only remembered them as the ones who nearly got his nee-chan hurt._

_Genie tried to calm him down. "Easy there, kid. We didn't come here to fight you." The tall swordswoman opened up. 'I should have expected this. He still remembers that night.'_

_Naruto calmed a bit, but kept his guard up just the same. He kept his hand near his weapon holster while he eyed them cautiously. "You and her called me a monster just like that crazy priestess and the others, so what makes you think that I should trust you?"_

_"Look..." Merrill sighed. "I know that we were being stupid. As for Melissa, she _

_doesn't know any better. She was raised by nobility, not by the streets like you and me were." She told him._

_Naruto still wasn't convinced and she saw that. She decided to tell him about what Jenny said on that night. "Lady Jenny told us about you. I was an orphan, just like you. I understand the pain and loneliness you went through to an extent. I also know the truth behind what you hold, and I don't hold it against you. You were only trying to protect that Ila girl that you care about so much." The small statured thief explained to him softly._

_Naruto eased_ _up a little after that fact as his expression turned downcast._

_Genie could see that he still didn't trust them, but she also felt that he had every right not to. "Listen kid, we would like to include you on our adventurer team. From what I've been hearing, you've been studying magic and becoming quite skilled with it. Why not test your skills out in the world and make a name for youself and make a living while you're at it? We get missions all the time, similar to what you're used to back where you're from."_

_Naruto perked up a bit at the chance for acceptance these two women were offering. "You're serious? Not joking or lying to me?" He asked them hopefully. _

_It nearly broke Merrill's heart to see such a desperate look in the eyes of someone so young, but she remembered that Naruto was strong and could handle the dangers that adventuring involved. "We're being completely serious and honest with you. We'd love to have you." She told him, ruffling his spiky blonde hair slightly._

_"On top of that, how would you like to learn how to use a sword?" Genie asked him._

_"You mean it?" He asked them excitedly. Trust teaching him anything new to break the ice._

_The tall woman chuckled at his enthusiasm. 'It's hard to remember that he's still only 13 years old.' "I really mean it, kid. I'll teach you myself." She told him honestly. _

_The young blonde was floored by the offer. He had to wheedle lessons and help from his former senseis, but this woman was offering to teach him her style of kenjutsu and offering him a place on her team. Acceptance. Aknowledgement. Two things he craved and was receiving in spades since he came to this world. "I'll do it. I'd be happy to join your team! Thank you Genie-sensei!" He exclaimed._

_Genie was puzzled by how he referred to her. "What does 'sensei' mean?" She asked._

_"It's a suffix that we add to those we respect as teachers." The short blonde explained to her. The team hit it off very quickly with the friendly shinobi. They found him very cheerful and pleasant to talk to, if not a bit loud but then again he's still young. It became a rather endearing trait along with his honest and playful nature._

_Genie became enthralled by his native culture and was especially captivated by his tales of the samurai, swordsmen and women, warriors with strict codes of honor and conduct. She really wanted to meet one and face him or her in a match to compare styles. She was happy to hear that her new student secretly looked up to them as a source of inspiration._

_Merrill was interested in the Kunoichi that Naruto mentioned, especially the ones named Tsunade, Kurenai, and Anko, three women he highly respected and was slightly terrified of. He told her that she isn't too far off from being a kunoichi herself and with the right training, she would be able to accomplish some of the same tricks he used. The sheer prospects of being able to create clones and walk up walls had her chomping at the bit. She even compared hardware with the small shinobi, having a go with his kunai and Naruto trying out her daggers. She marveled at the balance of the kunai and it's versatility. It was durable enough to be used in close quarters but still light enough to be thrown with deadly accuracy._

_They were both interested in learning about chakra from him, Genie to increase her speed and strength and Merrill to use the abilities that Naruto would teach her. The first step was to open up their chakra, which went off without a hitch. To his surprize, he found that Genie had rather large reserves where Merrill's were somewhat smaller, but still sizable. Next, came the chakra control exercises such as the leaf exercise and tree climbing exercise. Surprizingly, they got the leaf exercise down by the end of the week long mission and were currently working on the tree climbing, which was proving to be much harder and more taxing._

_Next up, they started to learn about actual jutsu. He taught them the three basics from the academy, the Bunshin, Kawarimi, and Henge. Merrill nearly salivated at the prospects of the Henge. Disguses would no longer be nesscessary, and it would be worlds easier to gather information unnoticed by anyone. Genie saw the combat practicality of the Kawarimi after Nartuo demonstrated it for them. She had to admit that being able to switch places with a random object to avoid taking damage was a very handy skill, one that could possibly save her life one day._

_During their missions thus far, Melissa kept to herself for the most part, but readily criticized the vertically challanged blonde at any given moment. She was appalled at the fact that her two friends were being so chummy with who she saw as a demon and a danger._

_Naruto was trying to be nice to her and trying to get her to trust him, but it wasn't working out so well. Jenny explained what it meant to be chosen as a hero and he rather embraced the idea. He felt that if he became a hero, people would see past the demon inside of him and see the real him._

_Ila was rather worried about her recently adopted little brother going out on missions that could be potentially dangerous. She knew that Naruto was strong and could take care of himself, but it still never stopped her from worrying for his safety. She wanted to spend more time around him and found herself getting to know Genie and Merrill while learning about chakra herself. She truly loved the boy, who had become a member of her family. _

_Lastly, Naruto was out training in the forest alone when he felt a strange presence watching him from the fringe of the tree line. "Who's there? Come out!" He shouted as he made some Kage Bunshin and palmed a pair of kunai._

_The figure in the tree was stunned twice. 'That young boy...how did he sense me and how did he do that spell without any kind of medium? That was incredible!' It thought as it dropped out of the tree, to reveal a slender, well endowed, and blond young woman with...pointy ears? _

_"Wha...An elf? This close to a town?" He asked. He had studied up on magical creatures and was especially eager to meet an Elf._

_"I was just in the area when I felt a strange energy coming from here, so I decided to check it out. I'm Celesia. How did you do that, by the way?" She inquired to his unique skills._

_"Oh that? That was just a jutsu and the name's Naruto!" He chirped with his fox-like grin._

_The young Elf couldn't help but see him as a cute little fox with his whisker marks and grin. However, the term jutsu was new to her, so naturally it piqued her curiosity. "Jutsu? I've never heard of that before." Celesia wondered._

_Naruto launched into a full explaination of chakra and what it could do. To demonstrate, he walked straight up a nearby tree like he was strolling down a path. The display had her floored. She'd never seen anyone or anything besides spider-like creatures do what he just did. She had to know what he was._

_"Are you a...demi-human or something? The air about you and your scent makes me think of a fox." She asked._

_Naruto was confused, then a little peeved. "No. I'm not." He answered curtly._

_Celesia sensed that she hit a real sore spot and sought to amend it. "I'm sorry for asking you that. It's just...I've never seen anything like what you've done before and it's actually pretty amazing." She admitted._

_Naruto let out a slight chuckle. "It's alright. It's not the first time that's happened." He replied wearily, leading her to believe that something was wrong, but wouldn't breech the subject unless he did first._

_The two made small talk for a little while on the branch of a tree. She told him that she was from a village in the forest of Tartarous, where her grandfather was one of the head elders leading the village. She asked how old he was and she was shocked that he was barely 13 years old and had been a shinobi for a full year already._

_Naruto remembered that Elves lived very long lives and blurted out the question as to how old she really was. He was surprized when she didn't get mad and just giggled while ruffling his hair. "I'm really 84 human years old, but I'm 17 amongst my people." She admitted._

_Naruto got flustered at the answer, but recovered. "W-Well, uh...You look really pretty then." He blurted out again, blushing profusely._

_She paused, smiled, and kissed him on the cheek. "You're really sweet and really interesting for a human." She told him and the two sat there in silence until they felt someone coming close. _

_"I need to go now. I'll see you again, my little fox." She whispered to him as she disappeared into the forest. With her leaving him there on that branch, that concluded his first encounter with an Elf. Inside of the seal, he felt the Kyuubi try to speak to him._

_"What's up, Fox?"_

_**"I've said it before and I'll say it again, you're a real babe magnet in this world! That hot little Elven honey actually kissed you! You should feel lucky, since Elves tend to shirk human contact, but this one likes you. You'll be seeing her again in the near future, of that I'm certain. I can't wait!"**__ The mighty Kyuubi no Kitsune giggled pervertedly. Naruto smacked his palm against his forehead in exasperation, but thought that she was one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen in his life, hands down, and he himself couldn't wait to meet her again._

_**END FLASHBACK**_

Naruto got up out of bed and got ready for the day, strapping the blade that was given to him by his new sensei which included meet his teammates at the tavern they frequented for a new mission with his team. Upon entry, the two waitresses spotted him and gave him a friendly greeting.

"Hey there, sweetie." Tessa called to her friend and part-time co-worker.

"Hey kiddo. Good to see you." The older waitress told him as she ruffled his hair.

"Hi ladies!" He chimed in response.

"So, what brings you here today?" Amy asked him.

"I'm meeting with my teammates today. I'm gonna get my new mission today and I can't wait!" He told them excitedly. He could hardly wait to get going and see more of the world that he was stranded in. He had originally wanted to go out on his own, but Jenny strongly advised against it, as did his new teammates, well Genie and Merrill anyway. Even though he could take care of himself, it still wasn't a very safe.

Melissa had made herself scarce ever since the tavern incident. Even Jenny and her fellow priestesses had a hard time trying to find her. She only came out if Naruto wasn't around or if they had team missions to do. Even then, she tried to pretend that Naruto didn't exist. Naruto would get a little glum, but he always tried to get her to trust him just for it to be thrown back into his face.

Merrill, Genie, and Melissa filed into the tavern and sat down at Naruto's table, with Melissa trying to keep her distance from him as usual. Naruto just sighed at her behaivor, used to it by now.

Merrill stood up and was about to rattle off some mission prospects until they saw Lady Jenny enter the tavern with 4 girls in tow, one of which winked at him, causing him to color slightly, noticed by Merrill and Jenny.

Merrill had a sly smirk. _'So...One of the little priestesses is kinda sweet on him...'_

Jenny had known about this for a while now. Denise was a nice girl and even though she knew the whole truth about Naruto, she liked him anyway. Many of her peers her own age followed Melissa around and copied her views of Naruto, but she had her own thoughts on him. _'At least she has some sense. He's a nice boy...too bad Denise was too young to do the revealing ritual and get him as her hero.' _

"Huh? Jenny-Obasan, what's going on? You guys need something?" He asked the elder priestess.

"Don't call Lady Jenny by that strange name!" Melissa scolded Naruto, but Jenny raised her hand to dismiss it.

"It's alright, Melissa. I really don't mind him calling me that. As for my business here, I wish to hire your team, Melissa. I want you and your team to take these trainees out to an abandoned ruin a day's hike away from here. There have been some complaints from locals that the undead have taken up residence there and I believe that it would be a valuable learning experience for these girls." Jenny told them as she further explained the details of the mission.

The team was to escort the young priestesses in training to the ruins and back, but when they were inside, only Melissa could go with them unless the situation was dire. Naruto nodded at the terms, as he knew what it was like having to figure things out for himself, like with Jiraiya throwing him off a cliff so he could learn to summon the Kyuubi's power on command, not to mention summoning that stubborn old toad Gamabunta.

Merrill was doing the math and was quite pleased with the amount they'd get for such a simple mission. This job would pull them out of the red with their debtors and finally put them on comfortable financial grounds. Naruto and Merrill had been doing odd jobs in order to curtail the costs of their gear and paying informants, while Genie had the occasional bodyguard job. None of which paid too well, but kept them out of debt hell for the time being, along with Naruto and Merrill being whizzes at handling money.

"We'll take the job, Lady Jenny!" The short thief chirped with glee.

"Excellent. Now, I leave these girls in your care." Jenny told the team as she took her leave via the Shunshin for effect. Jenny perfected it a few weeks ago and it took her a full month to do so after Naruto taught it to her, but it was worth the effort. She loved using this jutsu to get around as it saved much time in getting around town and enabled her to get to trouble spots quickly. She left the team in a swirl of leaves, bound for the temple once again.

"Man, I have to learn how to do that..." Merrill mumbled as she straightened herself to face the young priestesses.

"All right, everyone. I trust that you all have your gear standing by?" Genie asked them, to which they nodded. "Good. Since we still have plenty of daylight, we'll set out immeadiately." The towering woman told them as she shouldered her own pack, with Naruto mimicing her.

The young shinobi had come to greatly admire the Aleide tribeswoman and looked up to her a lot, just like he did with Merrill and Ila, to the point where he asked about getting facial tattoos like her. She chuckled and hated to disappoint him by telling him that he needed to be a member of the tribe, but she couldn't help but think one thing : _'You'd actually make a great tribe member, had you been born an Aleide. It's such a shame that you weren't.'_ She thought about her young apprentice.

_**OUTSIDE OF OPHEN - HALFWAY TO DEFILED RUINS**_

The team had been on the road at least until the sun was beginning to set when it was decided that they would begin to set up camp. The girls were exhausted, but Naruto, Merrill, and Genie were still doing just fine as Naruto volunteered to go catch dinner in a nearby stream, jumping off into the trees. Melissa watched him go with a snort of derision. "Stupid urchin..." She muttered, to which three of the apprentices nodded. Denise looked at them in disgust before she sat down near the other two team members.

"Why does Miss Melissa hate Naruto so much? He's really nice and hasn't done anything to anyone. I just don't get it." She asked them.

Merrill sighed. "Naruto has been chosen to be the hero she is bound to serve, but she only sees what she wants to see. She wants her hero to be just like the ones in the story books, but instead she got an orphan with a demon sealed inside of him. She's really bitter about it, but blames everything on him to make herself feel better."

The eyes of the young priestess narrowed as she regarded the senior priestess that was supposed to train them and her three worshippers. Ganet, Joan, and Anna completely worshipped Melissa in a manner that reminded Naruto of Sasuke's fangirls.

"Dammit! I STILL can't get away from those stupid fangirls!" Naruto snarled as he landed next to his other companions with a line of fish.

Merrill eyed the fish he had. "Good haul, kiddo." She commented. "By the way, what did you mean by fangirls?"

"Oh _**that**_. If you remember correctly, that jackass that gave me that chest wound was a popular guy. He had a horde of female followers that we all dubbed 'Fangirls', who all followed him around like lovesick puppies and would do _**anything**_ to please him, just because of his clan's name and status. Pretty sick if you ask me." Naruto told them, his distatse for such things evident in his tone.

Genie and Merrill were stupified as to why girls would do this. It seemed so...foolish and infantile. To build up this mental ideal behind a guy only for the guy to turn out to be a real douchebag seemed really, REALLY stupid. Denise knew of some of the younger priestesses that grouped around Melissa and the their behaivor matched that of the fangirls that Naruto described. That sort of blind adoration was dangerous.

They let the conversation die down as Genie offered to prepare dinner since he caught the fish. She had grown to like the roasted fish that Naruto taught them to make over a fire. It was quick and easy prepare, not to mention that the taste wasn't half bad, either.

After dinner was over, the women and girls all decided to go for a dip in the nearby stream while Naruto wanted to meditate for a while and clear his mind. The blond shinobi was sitting in the Lotus position as he ran through his thoughts over the past three months since arriving in this world. It occured to him that he never once tried to summon his toad friends.

_'Would it even work? I wonder...'_ He thought as he bit his thumb for some blood, swiped it on his opposite palm and flipped through the nesscessary handseal and poured as much chakra into the jutsu as he could manage.

_**"KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!"**_ He roared out as he slammed his palm down, causing a massive explosion of smoke filled the clearing he was in. The women and girls all heard and saw the explosion and knew that Naruto was in the area. Genie and Merrill immeadiately got dressed to go see if he was alright, but were stopped cold by the sight of the most massive creature they had ever seen in their lives.

_**"Oi! Where the hell am I?" **_The massive toad bellowed out, looking around.

Naruto, who was standing on it's head, called out. "Oi, boss! I'm glad to see you!"

The toad couldn't believe whose voice he heard. _**"N-Naruto-bozu? It that really you?"**_

"Yep! You'd better believe it, Gamabunta!" He yelled out happily.

_**"You little snot! We all thought that the Uchiha brat killed you! Do you have any idea how much people missed you?" **_He told his summoner.

Naruto was struck dumb by this. "W-What? That can't be right...people always thought that I was just a screw-up, a worthless nobody. You can't serious..." He whispered. Naurto then proceeded to tell him about where he was according to the Kyuubi and his new life there thus far.

The Toad Oyabin responded with the tale of the funeral that Tsunade held for him and all of the people who attended.

_**"Your sensei ended up taking down the Uchiha brat and dragged him back to the village. Tsunade nearly went mad with grief when he told her that you were dead and she broke down on the spot. That pink-haired teammate of yours took it pretty hard, too. She still blames herself for what happened. The council let the Uchiha off light as usual and even tried to enforce a bridal program that would have forced many young women to bear his spawn. That Sakura girl, the Yamanaka girl, and the Hyuuga heiress's were his targets, but the girls themselves all refused. They wanted you, kiddo. They all loved you, but figured that out a little too late."**_

The blond thought that he was too drained of chakra to hear him right. Hinata always acted funny around him while Ino and Sakura were always yelling at him or belittling him. To hear that they loved him was almost too far fetched to even begin to believe.

_**"The council next tried to prevent Tsunade from holding a funeral for you, but she had the backing from the shinobi clans. She also told your friends about the Kyuubi within you, but they didn't care about that. To them, you were as human as they were." **_

Naruto was beginning to tear up from the news. "They really did care..." He choked out with a sad smiile.

_**"Your funeral was attended by two Daimyos, from Wave and from Snow..."**_

"Koyuki-hime..." He breathed.

_**"That's right. The real surprize was that the other eight Jinchuuriki all gathered to mourn you. They all called you their brother. Even the vessels from enemy villages came to see you off."**_

Naruto was in awe. He had always wanted to meet others like himself since he found out about the Kyuubi, and they all attended his funeral. Gamabunta continued the tale of what happened, even telling of Shino's gesture at his casket, which drew some tears from the women and girl listening nearby. It was one of the most beautiful gestures one could give at a funeral.

_**"The most important thing to know is that Tsunade loved you, kiddo. Like she would love a son and she was even thinking of adopting you after the mission was over. She threatened the council with death if she wasn't allowed to hold a service for you."**_

Naruto always entertained the idea of Tsunade being his mother. She was rough around the edges like him, had a quick temper like he did, and was crazy about sake like he was with ramen. He deeply cared for her, but thought that if she weren't associated with him, she would have a much easier time dealing with the village, so he let that dream go. Now, he's told that she loved him, too. That she wanted him to be her son and to have him by her side.

The massive toad took a deep drag on his pipe, and let it out. _**"Oi, gaki. I'm getting a little low on chakra and have to go now, but I'll tell everyone that you're alive and well here. I'll talk with Shima-sama and Fukasaku-sama to help work on a way to bring you back home to us. I really did miss you, kid." **_The old toad sniffled before disappearing in a colossal puff of smoke.

Naruto landed in the middle of the clearing to sort through what he had been told. Finally, after failing to hold it in, he let out all of his emotions as he collapsed in a heap from mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion, dropping like a puppet with it's strings cut.

After Naruto fell, all three females rushed to his side, checking him for injuries and the like, but found him with a look of extreme sadness on his face and tears running down his whiskered cheeks in his sleep. Genie gently loaded him into her arms and carried her new student back to the campsite. Once there, Genie wrapped a blanket around the young shinobi and had him lean against her shoulder with her arm draped around him protectively, shutting her eyes to get some sleep herself.

As Merrill closed her eyes to sleep, she pondered all that she had gleened from the gigantic talking wallet. _'They never told or showed him that they cared until they believed he was dead...That's so sad...Poor boy.'_ She thought as she drifted off to sleep.

Mellissa's little groupies were chatting until they saw Denise sitting down at the base of a nearby tree, watching the blond boy rest quietly. "Why do you like that demon?" Anna asked her.

Denise's anger was piqued by that comment. "Don't call him that. If you really knew anything, you wouldn't say such cruel things." The girl growled in a cold tone and a matching glare.

"I still can't believe that he attacked Miss Melissa like he did and that he peeped on her during her revealing ritual. What a pervert." Joan snorted.

"Yeah! What a creep! On top of all that, he's just a dirty orphan and a heartless killer! Lady Jenny just feels sorry for him, so she gave this team the job with good pay." Ganet added, pouring fuel on the proverbial fire.

Denise had heard enough of their sneering and cruel comments. "What would any of you know? If all dirty orphans are like Naruto, I'd rather be one too than one of the stuck up nobility, like you. He's kind, sweet, brave, and many other wonderful things that I can't even begin to describe. I agree with Lady Jenny that he has the potential to become the greatest hero the world has ever known. I only wish that Mylee had made him MY hero." She snarled at them as she stormed off to where Merrill and Genie were.

Melissa heard the commotion and came over to check. "Girls, what's going on here? You should be getting to sleep because we have a full day tomorrow." She inquired to the young girls.

"Miss Melissa, why do you have to put up with that demon kid instead of your chosen hero?" Ganet asked of the senior priestess.

"Yeah, why? Didn't you recieve your hero yet?" Anna added.

"I'm sure that your hero will slay that demon, Miss Melissa!" Joan piped up.

Melissa was at a loss. She didn't want to tell the girls that Naruto WAS her chosen hero. However, Denise knew the truth and the senior priestess didn't want her to tell anyone or it would sully her reputation. She would have to talk with the girl about that in the morning.

_**THE NEXT MORNING**_

Naruto slowly regained his consciousness as he struggled to open his eyes and move his body. _'Man...I was so tired. I forgot how much summoning takes out of me.'_ He thought as he fought off a wave of nausea that hit him from the mild bout of chakra exhaustion he had. As he tried to sit upright, he noticed that he had a blanket draped over him, as well as an arm. He looked over to find Genie asleep against the same tree he was, pulling him to her slightly.

He smiled softly at this as he remembered what he learned from Gamabunta the previous night. "Thanks, Genie-sensei." He whispered as he carefully extracted himself from her grasp and began the preperations for breakfast, more fish. Concentraiting some chakra into his legs, he bolted off into the trees towards the creek nearby.

Unknown to him, Merrill and Genie were both awake to hear him say that and pulled themselves up. "You're welcome, kiddo." Genie responded. She was developing a real soft spot for her young protege, suspiciously mother-like. Merrill had never seen Genie respond like this to anyone before, and she had known the Aledie Swordswoman for a very long time. It actually warmed her heart to see the normally cold and aloof female warrior take someone under her wing like this, becoming a real teacher and role model. One that would fight to the death to protect him if need be, like a mother bear with her cub. She was harsh on him during their sword training, but he took it in stride and his skill improved faster than she could have dreamed possible. While he was still nowhere near her level, give him a couple of years and he would give her a real run for her money.

She herself found a kindred spirit in the plucky boy, with whom she shared a similarity in upbringings, both in the mean streets. Merrill's childhood was anything but pleasant, like his. She often had to steal her daily bread and do some other questionable things to survive from day to day. She was a natural born scrapper from the get go and was very quick witted, a born survivor. Over the few months that the boy had been on her team, he had latched on to her as another surrogate big sister like that Ila girl and was had to admit that she was growing fond of him as well. Even after a horrid life like his, he was still a bright and cheerful young man who seemed to breathe life into where ever he went, practically pulsating with light and energy.

The rest of their party has awakened after a few moments later, rubbing the sleep from their eyes and getting them accustomed to the sunlight. Melissa walked up to the campfire that was still lit due to a fire spell that Naruto had cast on it the previous night, making her scowl as she remembered that she was still around. She looked around, but couldn't find him.

"That stupid little brat...leaving a group of women alone while they slept while he's out playing around with his little parlor tricks." She grumbled as she spotted a person that she wanted to talk with, Denise, who was slowly waking up.

She briskly walked up to the 14 year old girl and got her attention. "Oh, Miss Melissa. Is there something you need?" She asked sleepily.

Melissa gave her an annoyed look, but continued on with what she wanted to discuss. "As you already know, that dirty little street rat is supposed to be my Hero, but I think it's a mistake. I don't want you to reveal this to anyone because if you do, the consequences won't be pleasant." The older priestess threatened. The way she saw it, her reputation was at stake and having a person who liked the boy would spell trouble for her. She wanted to keep a tight lid on who knew about this.

Genie and Merrill, who were nearby and listening, scowled in disapproval of such an underhanded thing to do. The girl was the only sane and logical Mylee Acolyte in attendance, not to mention she had a wicked crush on Naruto and there was nothing wrong with that. _'She cares more about her reputation than the well being of her hero and charges...Lady Jenny needs to do something about her.'_ Merrill thought, with Genie thinking along the same lines.

The other three apprentices were puzzled as to why Melissa was being overly harsh on Denise until they figured that she was being chewed out for being overly familiar with Naruto.

Naruto came bounding back into the campsite with more fish over his shoulder and walked up to the fire to prepare them. Denise walked over to Naruto to offer her assisstance.

"Hey, Naruto? I could help with that if you want." She offered.

Naruto grinned at her. "Thanks, Denise-chan. I really appreciate it."

She grabbed some sticks and skewered the fish and posted them near the fire as Naruto handed them to her after cleaning them. Soon, the aroma of the fish wafted through the camp and drew forth some grumbling from their stomachs.

During the wait, Naruto got an idea and decided to try summoning again. He bit his thumb for blood, swiped it on his summoning hand and flipped through the handseals.

_**"KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!"**_ He bellowed as he slammed his hand to the ground, causing a plume of smoke to arise. Once the smoke dispersed, a small orange toad with a blue vest on was left. The toad took a look at his surroundings and gaped when it saw Naruto.

"Bro! I knew you couldn't be dead!" It cried happily as it hopped up and latched to Naruto's face, giving them the damnest impresstion that it was trying to hug him. Merrill, Genie and Denise weren't at all surprised when they heard the smaller toad talk due to the massive toad from the previous evening, but were curious to know just how he could do that.

"OI! Kichi, come on, man! Cut that out!" He yelled as he danced around, trying to pry the small amphibian from his face. Finally Naruto managed to dislodge his reptillian buddy from his face and brought him up to face level.

Um, Naruto...Who's this?" Merrill asked what was seemingly on everyone's minds.

"Oh! This is a good friend of mine and one of my toad summons, Gamakichi! Kichi, these are my friends..." He announced as he made introductions.

"Oi bro...Are any of these nee-chans your uh...heh heh." He insinuated with his webbed pinky.

Naruto blushed a bright red as he sputtered. "No! It's not like that..." He said as he explained to his toad friend what the situation was and was even invited along.

"Cool! I always wanted to do a little adventuring outside Myouboku Mountain!" He replied.

"Hey Kichi, can you spit oil like the boss can?" Naruto asked.

"'Course I can!" He replied.

"Good let's go over there and try what Pervy Sage and your dad do when they team up." He suggested. Kichi's froggy eyes lit up. He idolized his father and would love to try something that he did. They walked over to the creekside as Naruto ran through the handseals for a Katon jutsu. Kichi signaled that he was ready as Naruto called out the attack.

"_**KATON : GAMAYU ENDAN!"**_

Just as Naruto breathed out a massive tongue of fire out onto the water, the small toad on his head spat out a stream of oil, making the flame grow to be almost four times bigger and no doubt hotter. A few trees on the other side of the banks were turned to ash as the flames it them, not even slowly burning down.

The women and girls were slack jawed by the sheer destructive power of the attack. Melissa had never seen a fire spell that could even come close to to what these two just did. Melissa had to admit that even thought she hated him, he could fight exceedingly well and was very powerful for being so young.

The girls were awestruck at the sight. "Wow! That was pretty neat!" Denise exclaimed loudly. The other three were still staring at where the trees used to be, which were now smoldering ashes.

"What the hell was that?" Joan asked her fellow trainees, to which she got no answer.

"This is what's called a summoning jutsu. It requires the user to sign a contract with the summoning creature with their own blood. This anchors the summons to you. Next, you have to earn the trust of the summons clan like you would a friend and if they like you, they can be summoned to help you on in combat! Kichi here is still young, but he'll grow up to be really big like his dad, the toad boss Gamabunta..." He told them as he recanted the tale of the first time he summoned the stubborn old toad and what he had to go through to get his cooperation.

The first part had the girls gasping, because he was thrown from a cliff to be given extra incentive to get it right. The next parts were quite humorous as he told them about how he had to stay on top of the giant amphibian's head while he tried to throw him off. Even the three naysaying girls silently cheered when he told them of how he succeeded in gaining Gamabunta's trust. They were impressed that someone just a little younger than they were was so capable and were beginning to rethink their opinions of him.

Denise saw their reactions and grinned. _'It looks like they're getting the picture and are starting to think for themselves. Scratch three fangirls...Good job, Naruto.'_

Breakfast was eaten, the campsite broken down, and the party got themselves moving along towards the ruins that was their goal.

_**DEFILED RUINS**_

The party had made it to the Defiled Ruins just after high noon and the young apprentices got themselves ready to enter the ruins. Kichi was puzzled as to why they were hanging back near the entrance until Genie explained.

"The whole idea is to see if those young priestesses can handle the job or not. If things get too tough or dangerous, then we'll go in with them."

The small toad nodded in understanding. "I get it. You need to see what they can do under stress. The ninja do similar things where were from."

Merrill smirked a little. "Y'know, you're actually pretty smart for a little guy."

Kichi gave her a lopsided grin. "You know it. We Toads didn't get to where we are now by bein' dumb."

They all turned their attention to the priestesses as they paused, just short of the steps leading to the ruin entrance.

"What was that?" Ganet asked, frightened by the chill she and the other girls felt.

As if to answer her question, many zombies arose from the ground to confront them. "Alright can any one tell me what they are?" Melissa quizzed the girls.

"Uh, Zombies?" Denise answered nerviously.

"That is correct. Now, as servants of Mylee, we must not be scared to face the undead. Now, please chant with me the holy words and repel this evil." She ordered.

She raised her hands before her as she began to chant out a holy spell, with the rest of the trainees following suit. _**"In the name of the War God, Mylee, submit to your destiny of death!"**_ They chanted as a pale band of light passed through the undead horde and caused them to disintegrate.

"Cool..." Naruto whistled as he watched them in action.

Suddenly, seemingly many times the number of undead came at them and they just couldn't handle them all. Naruto had seen enough and sprang into action with Gamakichi perched atop his head. Before the priestesses knew it, he was already infront of them protectively, weaving through his headseals and the toad puffing up.

_**KATON : GAMAYU ENDAN!**_

With the same attack they saw earlier, Naruto and his toad companion had incinerated the entire horde in one massive blast of flames. Leaving both himself and the small toad slightly winded and tired from the chakra expenditure, requiring them to take a few moments to rest.

Melissa wouldn't come out and say it aloud, but she was glad that he was there and did what he did. She wasn't sure that she would be able to handle that many AND protect the girls without one or more sustaining significant injuries. '_I won't say it, but...Thanks, Naruto.'_

"Okay, now that the undead here have been dealt with, we will proceed inside. If you would, please follow me..." She started to command, but Naruto stopped her.

"If you don't mind, I'll send in some of my clones to scout for traps. If they find any, I'll know and be able to guide you through them or Merrill and myself can disarm them." He offered.

Merrill and Genie smiled at his logic. He was certainly becoming a first rate adventurer and a good companion to have around. _"Heh...He learned from the best around.'_ Merrill thought proudly.

"Melissa, I suggest listening to him. You can never tell what kind of nasty traps or dangers can be lurking here. Those clones of his can either trigger the traps intentionally and scout around to make sure this place is even safe to enter." Merrill suggested.

She knew that Merrill knew what she was talking about, even if she didn't like how she was taking Naruto's side. "Very well." She said stiffly as she had the trainees stand down while Naruto used his favorite multi-purpose jutsu to create over twenty Shadow Clones, giving them orders to investigate the ruins and keep an eye out of hazards and traps.

They waited outside for around twenty minutes to give the clones time to do their job and attempt to map the place out. One by one, the clones began to disperse and sent back information to the original.

"My clones are all finished and have all either dispelled themselves or were destroyed by traps and the undead. I have a pretty good idea of the lay out of the first two levels and the traps in them so if we stay on those two levels, we should be fine." He advised them.

Genie nodded. "Good work. Naruto, you and Merrill take the lead. Melissa, you and the girls stay in the middle while I'll bring up the rear." The tall warrior called out as they arranged themselves accordingly.

Just before they entered the ruins, Naruto brought out the wand that Carwess had given him and cast a rudimentary light spell to light their path as he followed the path his Kage Bunshin carved out as they made their way into a main chamber that the clones found, Naruto and Merrill had disarmed many traps that were still active and Naruto even had the chance to disarm a magical trap that would have poisoned them all.

The girls (Minus Denise) were all having second thoughts about the young blond shinobi that was currently leading them safely into the ruins and past the traps. Melissa had told them and the other younger apprentices about what a shinobi was : A killer for hire.

That went against the very principles of what the Mylee order stood for and was very much un-hero like behaivor. This lead to many of the young apprentices who didn't know any better to being to hate and loathe the blond boy. Many of the older priestesses who knew Naruto tried to convince them otherwise, but Melissa and a few other zealous order members had already done too much damage.

From what they saw, Naruto was acutally really nice and sociable and had many interesting stories to tell of people he knew back where he was from and their quirks or of some of his missions and how they turned out. Some were funny, like when he told them of the missions to catch Tora the Cat. Some were sad, like when Haku and Zabuza died and when the Third Hokage was slain by Orochimaru. But all grabbed their attention and from the way he told them the tales, they could tell that he wasn't lying and that he acutally lived through those experiences.

Denise had already heard many of these stories, but she still couldn't help but be jealous of that Sakura girl that was his teammate. He was a true to life hero who would fight Heaven and Hell for her, but she threw her affections away on a boy who couldn't even care less about anyone and had even betrayed their homeland to go with a murderer, just for the selfish need to gain power.

Even the other girls found themselves a little jealous that this girl had someone who would fight any odds to protect her. It was through this that they were beginning to learn that real heros weren't the knights in shining armor on a white horse like Melissa believed. More than once, Lady Jenny told them that a true hero was one who could rise to valor, no matter the odds. Courage knew no social boundries or status, that even the poorest person was capable of extreme courage, above and beyond the call of duty.

They snapped out of their musings when the group came to a stop in the main atrium of the ruins. "Alright, everyone watch your step, two of my clones bought it in here because the floor collapsed under them..." He warned them until he heard a cracking underneath Melissa's feet. Suddenly, the floor gave way and she began to fall into a chasm, but Naruto dived in after her, causing Gamakichi to fall to the floor.

"NARUTO!" "MELISSA!" "BRO!" Was the shared scream as the two fell further into the darkness.

Naruto managed to catch up to Melissa and took hold of her while creating a batch of Kage Bunshin to break their fall. The gamble payed off as they hit the bottom of the chasm with only minor injuries. Naruto rolled over and began to stand up, but noticed that Melissa was missing. Suddenly, he heard a scream come from a nearby corridor and knew instantly that it was her. Who else would be down here?

He ran as fast as his legs could carry him and found that Melissa was being assailed by scores of undead. It seemed as if their numbers swelled as quickly as she could turn them, with her mental energies, the life blood of all magic, running dangerously low. Feeling her energy levels bottoming out, he rushed to her side, the blade that Genie had given him drawn, ready to do battle.

"W-What are YOU doing here?" She screeched.

"Doing what needs to be done. I'll hack a path and my clones will try to carry you back up to where the girls are." He told her without taking his eyes off of the horde.

"I-I'm not going to thank you for this." She told him crossly.

He sighed. "I know. Story of my life." Was his simple, pained reply as he ran in to engage their opponents. This reply made her heart wrench for some unknown reason. She felt a twinge of guilt within her that she hadn't felt before. _'I've been nothing but mean and nasty to him, yet...he still puts my life before his own.'_ She thought until she was hoisted onto the shoulders of two clones.

"Wh-What are you doing?" She yelled indignantly.

"Getting you outta here! Now shut up and hang on!" They all shouted back in unison as they began to scale the walls leading back up to the main atrium.

Back up top, the rest of the group was having similar problems. They had been ambushed by undead, but Genie had the situation under control. Even Gamakichi was contributing to the effort by covering them with his Toad Oil. Merrill saw what he was doing and threw one of her daggers against the stone floor at the feet of the zombies in such a manner as to make a spark, igniting the oil and incinerating the undead.

"Thanks for that, Kichi!" Merrill thanked the small toad, to which he gave her a web-footed thumbs up. Without warning, out of the hole Naruto and Melissa fell into a small squad of Naruto's carrying a shaken Melissa came running out of. They would have questioned how such a thing was possible, but they were learning to do the same thing.

"What happened down there? Where's Naruto?" Genie asked them with worry.

One of the clones fielded the response. "The boss is still down there. He held off those undead bastards long enough to get 'her highness' out of there." It responded, air-quoting the her highness part.

Back down in the chasm, Naruto was fighting for his life against a seemingly never ending assualt of zombies. He was using everything that Genie taught to him and for a while it was working and forcing them back. However, his success was shortlived as his blade snapped in two, leaving his ill-equipped to fend them off for much longer.

_"Dammit! I can't keep this up much longer!"_

_**"Kit, use my power. You know that you need it."**_

_"Damn...Fine, Fox. Let's have it."_

With that command, the Kyuubi's chakra flooded his system and made him explode with power. Turning his sights on the zombies, he proceeded to rip them to shreds with his Chakra Claws. Any zombie that got close to him began to burn up from the intensity of the Bijuu's potent chakra. A few short minutes later, the wholesale zombie slaughter was over and he proceeded to run up the chasm wall on all fours like a fox.

The priestesses all felt the wave of power washing over them and prepared for the worst. Genie and Merrill, however, recognised that power, how it felt, due to Naruto's training sharpening their senses to the point that they could vaguely feel chakra. A moment later a crimson blur shot out of the hole and landed before them in a cloud of dust. They all prepared themselves for a fight until the dust settled, revealing Naruto wrapped in the red chakra like a cloak and his wand in his teeth, which looked like it was burnt to a crisp. He was looking very feral with elongated fangs and claws, along with his once crystal blue eyes now slitted like an animal's being a burning crimson. The girls had never seen him like this before, but Denise wasn't frightened.

The rest tried to approach him to check him over, but Gamakichi thought otherwise. "Don't touch him when he's like this! It'll burn you if you do! Just let him calm down and show him that you aren't a threat, then he'll return to normal. I'm out of juice, so I'll be seein' all you nee-chan's later." He called out as he poofed from existance.

True to his words, the crimson cloak around Naruto died down and left him to fall flat on his face in exhaustion, his breathing ragged but still steady and strong. Genie and Merrill gave each other a glance and then smiled at their young charge and teammate. The massive swordswoman walked over and gently hefted his small body on to her back as they began their trek back to Ophen, back home.

_A/N : There's another chapter down. I had some difficulty writing this, as I wanted to have everything happen for a reason. I guess fangirls aren't only a Naruto-verse problem, seeing as how those three apprentices hero worship Melissa to the point of lunacy, following her uber-bitchiness towards our vertically challeged hero. Howeven, I'm banking on Naruto's uncanny ability to change proples views of him, hence why the young trio started to ease off of the criticism where Naruto was concerned. Now, the young O.C Denise will begin to make her move on our lovable blond, along with a certain elven maiden in Celesia. _

_Now that the Toads know that he is in fact alive and well in this different dimension, they will undoubtedly tell Tsunade and Jiraiya about this. When the tale of the ruins adventure and the attraction of a certain young priestess reaches the ears of the girls back home, you can bet that they'll put a rush order on trying to yank naruto back home, but will he want to leave the place where he found acceptance and a surrogate family in Ila and her father, Merrill, Carwess, Genie, and Jenny? Who knows but I'm looking forward to writing this next chapter now, espectially his meetings with the elves and how he deals with Conrad later! Ja ne!_


	6. The Real Deal

___Next chapter up! Time passes as it normally does, both in Konoha and in Ohfun. Naruto and his team just return from the ruins, only for Naruto to head right back out! Also, Jiraiya and Tsunade hear of Naruto's survival!_

_**OHFUN : SORCERER'S GUILD**_

Upon arrival in ohfun, Naruto made a beeline for the Guild to ask Carwess a question. You see, due to him having to go into Kyuubi Mode to save Melissa had some unfortunate consequences on his magic wand. Demonic chakra and magic wands don't really go well together, as the Kyuubi's power turned his wand into a cinder and rendered it completely useless. He dreaded telling Carwess what had happened to it.

As he wound down the halls, he ran right into Master Foltess, who had a scowl waiting for him. "Uzumaki...I do wish that you would not wander the halls like you actually belong here." The magic professor quipped at the blond youth who stopped in mid step.

Naruto turned around like he expected, but he had a smirk on his face instead of a frown. This was gonna provide with him with some much needed stress relief. "Must be pretty hard to walk, huh?" He asked.

Foltess had no idea what he meant by that. "What do you mean by that, boy? Out with it!" He demanded.

Within the seal, the Kyuubi was snorting with laughter at what his container was about to do. He had to admit that being sealed within this mischeivious little scamp was worth it. He was becoming more and more fox-like with each passing day, not to mention an unknowing babe magnet just by being his bashful, yet precocious and honest self.

"Geez...pipe down, old man! I meant that it must be hard to walk around with that stick so far up your ass that it must be giving you a headache!" He shot back with his trademark foxy grin as he made a fast getaway.

It took a moment for the comment to register in his head, but when it did, there wasn't a soul in the Guild, or even Ohfun for that matter, that didn't hear his angered shout. _**"YOU LITTLE BRAT!"**_

Naruto had turned the corner to Carwess's office just as he heard the enraged shout from the stuck up professor that always harassed him whenever he saw him about the campus.

_**"That was great! That ass deserved it!"**_ The demon fox roared with laughter.

_"Ain't it?"_ He replied mentally through his own laughter as he continued down towards the Headmaster's office.

Naruto approached the heavy wooden double doors that were the hallmark of the venerable magician and announced his arrival. "Carwess-sensei, it's me, Naruto."

The voice on the other end greeted him. "Ah! Naruto, my boy! Come in! Tell me what happened on your big mission with Jenny's girls!" The fordmidable sorcerer beckoned him from his desk.

Naruto gulped loudly and pushed open the door to enter the office. He promptly took a seat in front of the desk, but was oddly silent. Carwess noticed this oddity, but decided that if something was bothering Naruto, he'd tell him eventually. At his insistance, Naruto told him the whole story of what happened one the way to and inside the ruins, everything.

He was a bit dismayed at Melissa's behaivor and how if influenced the younger apprentices, but was proud of how he handled the situation. Next up, was of how the exploration of the ruins went and of how he disarmed the magical traps inside due to his arcane studies, which made the old man give him a proud grin. He was worried when Naruto told him of when he had to access the demon's powers in order to rescue himself and Melissa from the undead, but knew that Naruto knew his limits and trusted him to be careful.

All in all, Carwess applauded him on his first major mission as a magic user and it's resounding success that would bring on improved relations with the Mylee Order. However, he could tell that this wasn't all to the story as he asked to see Naruto's wand, to which he showed him the charred remains. Carwess was at first a little peeved, but understood after Naruto explained the situation. He had no idea that the Kyuubi's chakra would have done that to the wand, so he let it slide with the promise that he be more careful in the future.

Naruto then braced himself as he told Carwess of his attempts to use the Kuchiyose no Jutsu, and what he learned of events back home. The old magician was saddened by the fact that his classmates, teammate and sensei really did care, but didn't show it until it was too late and he was already gone.

After calming the boy down, he told Naruto of what he had to do in order to craft a new wand. He was required to enter the Forest of Tarsius and retrieve the wood of a 500 year old Oak.

"Is that all? Cool! I'll be back in a day or two, sensei!" He chirped cheerfully as he sped out the door.

Carwess didn't even get to complete the final part of his explanation and then, his warning. "The Forest of Tarsius is also known as the Demon Forest. If the vicious creatures don't get you, the Elves who live there might if they catch you. The forest is their territory and the will defend it with deadly force if need be. Please, be safe."

_**OHFUN : IN TOWN**_

Ila was currently on a shopping trip, looking for bargains and comparing prices when she spotted what looked like a blond head of hair moving at high speed along the rooftops. She silently thanked the chakra training that enabled her to sense and spot him in the first place, as she would know his unique signature anywhere. She used more of the shinobi awareness training that she got from Naruto to ease her way through the crowded marketplace and keep him in sight, finally coming to a stop at an outfitters that was an aquaintance of her families.

Inside the shop, Naruto was talking with the owner about an order he placed before he left on the ruins mission. He had asked him to have some kunai and shuriken made and was there to pick them up before heading out again.

"I have ta say, kid. These are some mighty fine weapons here. That kunai you left with me as an example was a work of art, cut right through paper just by touching it. I think I'll start making these and selling them as a specialty item. Thieves would go nuts over these! As a thank you, take this set on the house and tell your friends about this shop!" He clamored, thinking of the profits to be made.

Naruto packed them away into his holsters and bought some basic supplies since his were almost exhausted. _'Let's see here...Potions, Anti-toxins, I've still got plenty of wire...All done here.'_

He brought the items to the counter, paid for the articles, and was about to leave the shop until Ila came in. "Naruto? You just got back, but now you're heading out again?" She asked in concern. She hadn't seen him in over a week and she was looking forward to just spending time with him again.

Naruto told her of what happened to his wand back at the defiled ruins and told her that he was just going to the Tarsius Forest to get more wood, like he was only going to the market for some bread. She bent down to be at eye level with him and took hold of his shoulders.

"Naruto, that forest...is very dangerous, even for highly experienced adventurers. Please, tell me that you're not going in there alone." She pleaded with him as she hugged him tightly. This show of concern and affection only further reinforced the fact that she truly loved the boy.

Naruto felt her trembling and felt a tear impact his face. _'She's crying?'_

"Nee-chan, if it's that dangerous, I can't get anyone else involved just to get some wood to make me a new wand. I just can't do it. I've been through worse on my own, so I'll be okay. I'll come back, that's the promise of a life time!" He told he with unwaivering confidence as he performed a shunshin to his next stop in preperations.

Ila swore quietly. She already knew that he wouldn't ask for help on this, seeking to solve this problem alone for fear that something might happen to his friends. She had to find his teammates fast, before he left the city so that they could help talk some sense into him.

She managed to find them at their usual watering hole just off of the main streets, sitting at their usual table. "Guys! Naruto's going to try to go off into the Tarsius forest alone! He wouldn't listen to me!" She told them with obvious panic in her voice.

Merrill and Genie's eyes widened immeadiately. "What? That's insane! He'll get himself killed for sure! When do you see him last and what else does he have to do before he leaves?" Genie asked in a frenzy as she lashed her zanbatou to her back.

"He needed to go to the money lender and another supply shop before he leaves and I saw him ten minutes ago!" Ila answered quickly.

"Good! We can still catch him! Let's go, Genie!" Merrill shouted as all three ladies left the pub and headed for the Northern Gates to cut off the reckless blond.

_**MYLEE TEMPLE, JENNY'S OFFICE**_

Melissa had just left the office of Lady Jenny after delivering her report on the mission and how the girls faired on their first mission. After she was seen, she called in the girls in question to ask how they enjoyed their first time out of the city. The girls all had differing reactions to their little adventure and their teammates. Janet, Joan, and Anna were all conflicted where Naruto was concerned. It was blatantly obvious that Melissa and a couple of older priestesses were still influencing the young apprentices, but it only took Naruto being himself to undo some of the damage done. Denise was reported to have performed less than satisfactorily, but the others were saying that she was the most fearless of the four girls as well as the most potent in combat, as the other three admitted that they weren't really ready yet.

Jenny pinched the bridge of her nose as she called Melissa back in to her office, dismissing the girls to return to their duties about the temple. As soon as they were sure that they were alone, Jenny stood to her full height, which was actually impressive for a woman, 6 feet even.

"Melissa. What do you have against Denise, and why are you encouraging the younger girls to dislike someone who comes from a very different culture than ours?" She demanded.

"He is from a culture where it's just fine to kill for money! They're no better than murderers! On top of that, he's only an orphan with no name or reputation and he has that demon sealed inside of him! Please, Lady Jenny! This has to be some sort of mistake, he CAN'T be the hero I'm bound to serve! Hero's are supposed to be like King Rijarl, not that little pauper with dirty tricks!" The younger woman pleaded.

Jenny was currently trying to fend off a potential headache as she rounded on Melissa. "Tell me, what does social status and culture have to do with one being a hero?" She asked exasperatedly.

"What do you mean by that?" She asked, clueless as to the real meaning behind her words.

She had always envisioned Heroes being brave knights in shiny armor riding stallions. In the stories she had always read as a child up until she left her family, they were always perfect gentlemen and of noble birth and upbringing. Naruto was a shinobi, an entire race of people who killed for the highest bidder. What she knew of the ninja ways was that they struck from the shadows, operating in secret. Naruto was an orphan, never knowing his parents and had a demonic entity sealed within him and he could call upon its power. Heroes sometimes used magic and but always fought head-on in honorable combat. Naruto used a combination of his native ninja parlor tricks and what magic he had learned, along with his hand to hand fighting skills. Heroes were supposed to be her age or maybe a little older. Naruto was barely even thirteen years old, still a boy. Hell, he was almost ten years her junior, younger than some of the apprentices.

"I meant that true heroism knows no age, no social status or rank, no culture. Anyone can show it and has the potential, and Naruto is no execption. He was a hero among his own people, only to be hurt and shunned for what he carries within him by people with that same short-minded mind set you are displaying right now. I suggest that you think on this and try to see your CHOSEN hero for who he really is. Now go and think about your actions." Jenny ordered her out of the office.

Once gone, the veteran priestess slumped into her chair. "That girl...when will she learn that her version of a hero doesn't really exist? Even King Rijarl has his flaws, being possibly of the biggest pervert that I'll ever know." She said aloud to herself, but thought about it for a moment.

"But that Jiraiya fellow could give him a run for his money in that department. Heaven help us if those two ever met." She chuckled as she remembered the crazy pervert from Naruto's memories.

_**OHFUN CITY STREETS**_

Once Melissa was outside of the temple grounds, she made a beeline for her favorite pub when her teammates went screaming past her in a panic.

"Wh-what's going on?" She asked them.

"Naruto's going into the Tarsius forest alone! We can't let him do that!" Merrill exclaimed as she took right back off again. Melissa sighed heavily as she took off after the small statured theif.

_'Damn that boy! If he dies, then I'll REALLY be in for it!'_ She thought while in hot pursuit of the vertically challanged blond.

Finally, they all made it to the entrance of the city where Naruto woukd HAVE to pass in order to leave. Like clockwork, he came strolling down the pass with his pack and blade, ready to head out, when they came running up to him.

"Oh, hey guys! What's up?" He asked innocently.

Merrill stormed up to him angrily. "What's up? Do you have ANY idea where it is that you're going?"

"Yeah, some forest call Tarsius to get some wood for my new wand! I'll be back before you know it!" He told them cheerfully, giving them a thumbs up.

Genie was shaking with fury. "You...YOU IDIOT!" She roared as she grabbed his shoulders harshly.

"Hey! What's the deal?" He yelled until Ila smacked him.

He held his cheek, stunned at what happened. "N-Nee-chan?" He asked in a hurt whisper.

"Naruto...The forest of Tarsius...is also known as the Forest of Death. Anyone who's tried to go in there for wood just like you are now...is never seen again." She told him as she began to tear up. She didn't want to do what she did, but she was scared.

Naruto's visage took on a hard look. "I've been through worse. I'm not a child and I'm not helpless."

"We know that, but...but I...don't want to lose you. I'm scared...That you won't come back if you do this on your own." Ila retorted as cupped the cheek she slapped to get his attention. "I'm sorry that I hit you, but I want you to understand just how dangerous that place really is. Even Master Carwess would have a hard time making it out of there alive."

"She's right, kid. Your chances are better if you take us along with you. We're a team, so we stick together." Genie told him confidently as she took his shoulder again, only much more softly this time.

"We care about you, too. I don't want you to leave us so soon and like that. I've kinda gotta attached to ya, y'know." Merrill added as she ruffled his hair.

Melissa stood back as she watched how her teammates interacted with her hero. They accepted him as one of their own and trusted him beyond the shadow of a doubt. They know of the demon, but see past it. He is a nameless orphan who was raised in a society of killers for hire, but they see a kinship with him. _'What is it about him that they see that I don't?'_ She wondered as they prepped themselves to head out.

_**KONOHA**_

It was just another day in the village of Konoha. Shoppers shopped, peddlers peddled, the shinobi went about their business. All in all, a normal day. Kotetsu and Izumo, the eternal Chuunin as they had been dubbed by many, were currently on guard duty at the main gate.

"Man, it's kinda boring today. I wanna go and do a mission or something." Kotetsu whined, making Izumo groan. Although, he had to admit that his long time best friend was right.

"Yeah. It's been kinda dull around here without..." He stopped suddenly, remembering the blond who was always up to something. His partner didn't need him to finish to know who he was talking about.

"I know. I miss that kid. I always had a blast whenever he pulled a prank." He replied, going on about all of the pranks that the wily blond had pulled in the past.

The two reminesced about the 'good old days' for a little while until they spotted someone moving towards the gate at high speed. With a nod, the two prepared themselves for the object or person to come within range until they spotted long, spiky white hair. they relaxed, as they knew that the Toad Sage was coming back into town.

Jiraiya stopped at the gate to check in as they noticed an excited look on his face, the kind of expression that he nor the Hokage had worn since the funeral. When he was done, he took off at full tilt for Hokage Tower. The pair sighed as they went about their duties again, the excitement all over.

_**HOKAGE TOWER**_

Tsunade had just finished with a fresh batch of paperwork as she stretched her arms wide and was reaching for a small bottle of sake to wet her whistle. Shizune had gotten a little more lenient with her drinking as of late, as long as the paperwork was done. Besides, when she drank, she remembered happier times.

_**FLASHBACK**_

_Tsunade was sifting through some documents, looking for a mission scroll when Naruto and his team came parading through the doors in his usual fashion._

_"Hey, Baa-chan! We're here for the mission you wanted to give us!" He yelled loudly, spooking her into knocking over a large stack of forms that she had managed to sort neatly. The forms scattered all over the office to her dismay, wasting an hour's worth of effort._

_"NARUTO!" She yelled, but was beaten to the punch of bopping him on the head by Sakura. _

_She walked over and lifted him by the scruff of his shirt, dangling in front of her face. "You little punk! Do you have any idea how long this took me to finish organizing?"_

_Naruto wore a look of shame on his face as he apologized to her. "I-I'm sorry, baa-chan. I-I didn't know. I'll help you do it again if you want me to." He offered._

_She snorted at the offer. "No. You'll just mess it up even worse. Just...take the mission and get out of my sight." She told him harshly as she thrust a mission scroll into his hands and shooed them from the office. Outside. she could hear Naruto's teammates lay into him in a very severe manner, far more harshly than she did and she heard an extra thump._

_Shizune came in from the next room shaking her head. "Don't you think you over did it? Just a little? He did offer to help you do it again and with his Kage Bunshin, it would have been done in a few minutes." She chided as she started to collect the errant papers._

_Tsunade calmed down and wore an ashamed look on her face. She knew that Naruto didn't mean to do it and that he didn't really mean any harm. He was also nice enough to want to help fix his mistake, but she had just gotten that stack all nice and organized, plus she had also gotten done with another meeting with the civilian council about Naruto's fate. They had tried to have him either killed or banished due to the threat that the Akatsuki posed._

_"I-I know." She replied in a downcast voice as she told her longtime friend, confidant and student about how the meeting went. _

_"I see." Shizune replied morosely._

_"I wanted to adopt Naruto... to protect him from the council and help him reach his dream. I want him to take this seat from me. He has the potential...he just needs the proper encouragement and support." _

_'Just like his father before him, Kami rest his soul.' Tsunade thought sadly._

_Two weeks went by after she first assigned Team 7 on the mission to Tea Country when she recieved a communique from Boss Jirocho to send a boat for a wounded member of the team after the mission was a complete success. She was worried that Naruto had gotten hurt and was pensive the entire time until they made it back to see that Naruto was okay. It was Sasuke that got hurt. During the debriefing, she learned that it was Naruto who defeated the missing nin Aoi Rokusho, who stole a very valuable artifact that belonged to her greatuncle, the Niidaime Hokage. However, the artifact was destroyed when Aoi attempted to block a fully powered Rasengan with it, only to have it snap and have the traitor fall to his doom, taking the sword with him. He managed to excort the client to the finish line and won the Todoroki Race, helping her old friend Jirocho take control of Port Degarashi once again. He mentioned in a personal note that he was impressed by Naruto and would be watching his career with great interest._

_She could not help but feel proud of the boy. It seemed like the rest of the world saw what his own home village couldn't. He had proven himself to be a hero over and over again, but it never made a difference. _

_After the de-briefing was over, Naruto stayed behind, but avoided looking her in the eye. _

_"Yes? Is there something to add?" She asked him, to which he apporached her desk with a storage scroll and unsealed it to reveal a large bottle of premium Tea Country sake, along with some assorted tea snacks. _

_"I...I'm sorry about before. I really wanted to help make it right again, I really did, Baa-chan! Also, I heard from Ero-sennin that your birthday was just last week. I got you these to say happy birthday." He finished silently as he turned around to leave her office, not wanting her to be angry with him again._

_He was in for the shock of his life when she was behind him in a split second, wrapping her arms around him. "Thank you, Naruto. And I'm sorry for yelling at you." The beautiful Sannin told him softly as she turned him around to face her. She then kissed him again on his forehead._

_"You're a sweet young man. I'm very thankful that you are in my life." She added as she sent him on his way. _

_"My sweet little Naru-chan...how I wish I could take you in and help you become the man I know you can be." She murmured as she poured herself a small drink of the rich sake Naruto brought for her as a present._

_**FLASHBACK END**_

Tsunade cranked back a deep tug of liquor, sighing as the burning sensation it left in it's wake disappeared. She really did miss him, very badly at that. She wanted to take him, to make him her son and her to be his mother, the very thing he secretly wanted most of all. As she prepared herself for the next round of paperwork, she felt a familiar presense in her office window.

She wheeled around to find none other than Jiraiya himself, whom she hadn't seen in person in months with the biggest grin on his face. Upon closer inspection, she found that this wasn't one of his usual perverted grins, but a full blown happy smile.

"Hime! I've got great news!" He exclaimed happily.

"W-What is, Jiraiya? Spit it out!" She demanded.

"It's about Naruto...He's alive!"

Tsunade felt her heart stop. "M-my baby?" She asked, the news sapping strength from her voice.

Jiraiya went on to tell her of all that Gamakichi and Gamabunta had told her about where he wound up and what he was up to. Her heart nearly broke when it was mentioned that he was stuck there with no way to come home, but her spirits lifted again when her old teammate mentioned that the Toad Elders and himself were hard at work on a summoning array that might be able to bring him back and that the Toads could be summoned to the dimension that he was in.

"Gamabunta told me that Naruto was surprized that anyone cared that he was gone. As far as he knew, he only had a small handful of people who believed he had any worth at all and that he was already forgotten in favor of the Uchiha yet again. Kichi told me that Naruto was doing quite well for himself there. There are no ninja where he is, but he took up a job as an adventurer, and explorer of sorts. He mentioned that he was also studying magic, which is practiced in this world, to better himself along with learning how to use a sword from a teammate of his."

The female Sannin felt her pride for the boy overflow as she took in all that he was doing to adapt to his situation, but saddened that he thought that nobody wanted him around, and that she herself could have tried harder to show him that she truly loved him. Now, it was like being given a second chance from the heavens and nothing nor nobody would keep her from seeing him again.

She listened on as Jiraiya explained how Naruto entered that world and who found him. She was very grateful to Jenny for her kindness and acceptance of the demon inside of him, as well as Carwess for helping him. She was told of the Mylee Order of priestesses, who in a ceremony are shown a hero to follow and go into the world. Naruto was chosen to be this hero, supposedly by the god himself. She was proud of how seriously Naruto took the role he was given and he showed great pride in it.

Next, she was told about his new friends and teammates. First came Ila, who he seemed to form an attachment to as an older sister. Next was Merrill, a spunky thief who had taken a shine to him and was teaching him her trade, like another older sister. Then came Genie, a master swordswoman who was taller than Jiraiya who had taken Naruto under her wing and was training him in the sword arts.

However, he had gotten off to a rocky start due to the priestess who had Naruto as her chosen hero. First, she saw him in his base Jinchuuriki form when he crash landed in their world, making her believe him to be evil. Next, she nearly got him killed when she unwittingly stirred up a mob that attacked Ila as well as himself, but he saved her life when he took a sword thrust that was meant for her. Now, this woman disparaged him and his status as an orphan at every turn.

This news got Tsunade's blood boiling. "Who does this bitch think she is?" She roared and raged until Jiraiya calmed her down. Lastly, was that Kichi and Naruto were forming the same bond that Bunta and himself had formed many years ago, even using a watered down version of the Gamayu Endan, which made the Toad Sannin beam with pride and that he was already changing people's opinions of him just by being himself.

After it was all said and done, Tsunade was overwhelmed by emotion as she cried into the shoulder of her ex-teammate, who embraced her gently in return. Jiraiya, like Tsunade, was determined to get his godson back. He couldn't face Minato and Kushina in the afterlife if he didn't.

"Get cracking on that seal, Jiraiya! I want to know the second it's done!" She ordered, to which Jiraiya bowed.

"Hai, Tsunade-hime." He replied as he left just as suddenly as he arrived.

"Now...I have news to break out to everyone." She said to herself as she prepared to call in and contact all of those who grieved for Naruto and give them the great news, but halted herself. She remembered that the Akatsuki was still out there, and that if she announced his arrival, they would swarm in on him in a hurry. She decided to tell a select few and go from there.

"Please, stay safe. Mother is coming to bring you home soon." She whispered.

_**TARSIUS FOREST**_

After allowing the ladies to grab their travel gear, Naruto and the team had set off towards the Tarsius Forest in order to fetch the wood that was a necessary component in making magical wands and mediums. Melissa was dragged along reluctantly, not really feeling the urge to rush off into a monster and hostile elf infested forest. Genie was also a little pensive, but since her teammate needed her help, she was there. Merrill just stuck close to Genie while Naruto had some of his clones running through the trees as scouts, while he stayed up front.

The tall swordswoman and ex-mercenary grinned with pride that her disciple had taken her lessons on strategy and tactics to heart. He may have been a war veteran and a hero, but his basic education was sorely lacking. She taught him all that she knew about the art of warfare and he hung on her every word, soaking up her lessons and knowledge like a sponge.

Things were going along unusually well for being in a literal forest of death until a long howling cry sounded in front of them and Naruto jolted slightly. Merrill went up and asked him what was wrong.

"Hey, what happened? Your clones find something?"

"Y-yeah...Goblins and Orcs...dozens of them. Dead ahead. That warcry was from when they destroyed one of my clones. It didn't look like they knew where we were, but I'll have my clones lead them away." He told the group as he made his favorite seal and produced twenty more clones, trying to conserve his chakra since he didn't have any soldier pills incase they got attacked anyway.

Genie understood that his diversion may not work and readied herself just incase same as Merrill and Melissa. They advance along their course further until they got ambushed by some Trolls that were out hunting. The Trolls sniffed them out immeadiately and began their assault, bringing their clubs and crude spears to bear. Naruto decided against using jutsu and instead closed in with his new sword, and this time he channeled his chakra into it to reinforce it so it wouldn't snap like last time. Genie began to mow down their demi-human attackers left and right while Merrill peppered them with her throwing daggers and a couple of kunai that she was given by Naruto while perched on the side of a tree. Melissa had her war hammer handy and was using it to fend off a couple of the smaller clones.

As the battle raged on, it got the attention of more of the forest's denizens, who came in to join the party. Now, Naruto was regretting his desicion against using jutsu and began to create more Kage Bunshin to try and thin out the enemy numbers. Over with Genie and Melissa, Genie pushed Melissa out of the way of a lethal blow. Melissa gasped in horror as the crudely made spear ran her companion through, only to see her change into a log with the spear lodged in it and the real Genie cutting the creature down from behind.

Soon, Naruto ahd their numbers thinned out enough to take them out on a single blow. "Guys! Clear out!" He shouted as he ran through the handseals for a powerful fire jutsu. Merrill used her lessons in chakra usage to power a jump into the upper trees, while Genie did the same, only carrying Melissa with her while doing so. They watched at the Clones corralled the beasts in do a tight pack to unleash his attack.

_**KATON : KARYUU ENDAN!**_

The jutsu unleashed a powerful and massive, but controlled blast of searing hot flames which obliterated the creatures, leaving only their ashes behind. Jumping down from the trees, the team surveyed the damage done and checked if any could have possibly survived. Luckily, the jutsu did it's job and took them all down in one shot. Melissa still had a question on her mind.

"Genie, you did you survive getting stabbed like that? I could have sworn that you were killed!" She exclaimed.

Genie chuckled. _'I knew learning that Kawarimi would save my life one day.' _She thought before speaking.

"It was a technique that Naruto taught me, called the Kawarimi or Replacement. It pulls the user out of harms way by switching places with an object or even another person just before the attack hits. It's one of the most useful things I've ever learned." Genie admitted.

Something really bothered her about the sudden attack. _'These creature usually only move about at night, but they attacked us in broad daylight...Something's not right here.'_

Melissa was given more to think on. Naruto had been teaching them how to do some of the things he could do, like that Replacement and how to cling to things, like Merrill was doing. She was thinking to herself that maybe it wouldn't hurt to learn these things, but it would mean that she had to apologize to Naruto for all that she had done to him. He would barely even talk to her unless it was absolutley nesscessary and she had never really apologized to anyone before while growing up, so she was at a loss over what to do.

Naruto had been trying to rest and regenerate some of the chakra that he used up when he felt several strange energy signatures making a bee line right for them. Before he could do or say anything, they were surrounded. The Elves from their village nearby sensed and heard the commotion that their battle caused.

"Halt, humans! What are you doing in our part of the forest?" An Elven male, with long silvery hair asked them in a challenging manner. Genie decided to speak up for them.

"We are just passing through and try to find a branch from a 500 year old oak for our young friend here." She announced of their intentions, gesturing to Naruto, who waved back at them cheerfully.

However, the Elves were not very happy with their intentions in their forest and drew their bows, beginning to get aggressive.

"Thieves!" Another, older looking elf roared in anger as he pulled out his sword.

"Hey, what the hell? All I need is just one branch! That's all!" The diminuitive blond yelled at them. He was getting ready to defend until Genie clamped down on his shoulder.

"Don't do it. Let's see what has them so riled up." She told him as the elves all jumped down from the trees and took them prisoner. Nearby, another elf was watching with concern.

"Is that Naruto? I have to do something!" She gasped as she tore off towards the elven village.

_**ELVEN VILLAGE**_

Inside of the Elven village, inside of the village meeting chambers, the elders of the village were coming to a desicion on what to do about all of the magicians and theives that were constantly entering their lands and stealing as they pleased. On top of all of that, the attacks from the less friendly fauna of the woods were getting more frequent and increasingly violent. The number of dead weren't as high as they could have been, but their number of wounded was very high and they more than likely would not survive another major attack at this rate. Even worse, was that some crazy magician had been whipping up the creatures into their frenzy, trying to root the elves out of their ancestral home.

On top of those troubles, the game that they usually hunted were either being scared off or killed off by the increasing amount of monsters in the forest as of late. Their food supplies were dwindling, dangerously low. Something had to be done NOW.

"I say we kill these intruders! They might be in league with that raving lunatic that's been trying to take what is rightfully ours!" One of the elders cried, getting a rousing cheer from the crowd that had gathered. Many more elders made the same declarations and whipped the crowd into a fury as Celecia watched on. Finally, she couldn't watch anymore and ran off to the prison hut.

From the prison hut, the team could hear the commotion and cries of outrage, nothing good. "Man, they sound pissed." Naruto commented as he fumbled with his bindings.

"Yeah, but from what I know, elves usually avoid humans altogether. Something must be really wrong for them to be this angry." Genie replied.

Merrill sat and thought for a moment until a viable reason hit her. "Hey, do you think that it might be due to how we got attacked during daylight?" She asked.

"You're correct." A feminine voice answered them from the window of the hut. They turned to face the source of the voice and saw a younger female elf with long blond hair that was almost the same shade as Naruto's own spiky locks.

She then moved to the front bars of the prison so they could see her better. "Didn't I say that we'd meet again, Naruto?" She told him playfully as recognition dawned on him.

"Hey! I remember you! Uh...ummmm...Celecia!" He said excitedly. He had been looking forward to meeting her again, but not like this. "Hey um...do you think you could let us out of here? All I really needed was one branch from a 500 year old oak." He explained to her and of how his last one got fried, which made Melissa hang her head. She knew he did that to protect her, even if it was only out of duty.

Celecia shook her head sadly. "No, I can't do it right now. This village has been attacked over and over again by monsters wnating a meal and rouge magicians wanting our wood and rare herbs. There has been one lone magician who has been attacking us for the past two months and he has done immense damage to our people. While our death toll is low, the number of wounded grows daily. Soon, we may very well fall if they attack us on a large scale again and we will either be killed or sold into slavery. I know that you wouldn't dream of doing something like that. Allow me to talk with my grandfather and I'll see what I can do." The blond elven maiden told him as she sped off toward the council chambers.

The rest of the team was puzzled as to how Naruto knew this elf personally. "Naruto, how did you meet her, anyway?" Genie asked him. She knew that elves don't normally come anywhere near human towns for any reason, but this one did.

"I met her about a month after the tavern incident..." He started off, glaring at Melissa due to how she nearly got him and an innocent killed that night.

"I was training in a patch of forest just outside of the city when I felt something strange on the edge of senses. It was coming from a tree right next to me, so I called out for the person to stop hiding an that I knew they were there. She dropped the cloaking spell she was using and asked me how I found her. I just told her the truth, at least about being a ninja. She was interested in it, so we talked for a few hours and introduced ourselves. She was really nice and told me that we'd meet again..." He told as he trailed off with a monster blush.

Genie didn't have to be told twice as to what probably happened. When an elven maiden found human male that they liked, they would kiss them and tell them that they'd meet again. Apparently, this particular elf girl took a shine to her young student and teammate. Genie just shook her head with a light chuckle. _'That boy attracts female attention like honey does bees, and he doesn't even mean to do it. He's just being himself. Unfortunately, trouble finds him the same way. At least with him around, I'll never be bored.'_

Merrill had similar sentiments as her tall tanned partner. He was like an unwitting ladies man and his charm would only get more alluring as he got older and matured. She knew he'd grow into a heartthrob when he grew up, she just knew it.

Melissa was once again stunned at how her unwanted hero seemed to be able to befriend an elf, something that was thought to be completely impossible. He seemed to have this aura of charisma about him, something that seemed to attract people and make them believe in him. It was starting to work on her as well.

Back in the council chambers, Celecia pleaded with her grandfather to let him loose, only to be flatly refused.

"No, I refuse to release them for they might bring even more humans in with them next time! That insane spell monger that's attacking us is more than enough already! We must make an example of them!" He yelled at his granddaughter. As he started to storm off, screaming could be heard outside, followed by an explosion. He rushed outside to see that they were already under attack. Celecia unsheathed her blade as she ran forward to help defend her home.

Back with the team, they could hear the sounds of battle coming from outside. "What the hell was that?" Merrill yelled. As if to answer her question a massive Troll came crashing through the wall of their improvised prison, axe poised to cleave Naruto in two. As the axe came crashing down, Naruto manuvered his bindings into the path of teh bladed weapon, cutting himself loose. Once free, he quickly bradished a hidden kunai and drove it deep into the creature's skull, killing it instantly.

"Come on! We've gotta go help them!" He cried as he cut the rest of his team loose.

Melissa looked at him like he was insane, but Genie nodded in agreement, grabbing her zanbatou which was placed outside along with their weapons and packs and joining the frey.

"Melissa! Stay back and heal the wounded! We'll cover you!" Naruto yelled as Genie, Merrill and himself launched into combat.

The elves were scattered everywhere and in the chaos, the non-combatants were getting caught in the crossfire. Naruto quickly summoned some Kage Bunshin and gave them their orders.

"Go and find any children and heavily injured and bring them here!" He yelled as he bit his thumb for blood and swiped it across his hand, going thought the handseals for summoning at rapid speed.

_**KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!**_

In an explosion of smoke, a house sized orange battle toad wearing tekkou appeared.

_**"Oi, Naruto! What's going on?" **_He yelled.

"Gamahana! I need you to protect these children and this woman from harm while we try to drive off these attackers!" Naruto asked of the combat toad.

_**"Gotcha, kid! Give 'em hell!"**_ The toad replied as he stood guard over the defenseless children his summoner had already gathered.

_**"Don't worry tadpoles. I'll keep you safe." **_Gamahana told them to comfort them as he blocked an incoming blow, swatted it aside and pummeled the Troll with a massive right hook, breaking it's neck.

Naruto was still searching for non-combatants while fighting off any enemy creature he came across with his sword and ninjutsu when he heard a scream off to his right. He rushed over to find a slain elven man draped protectively over who he presumed to be his wife and son, with an Orc poised to kill them both. Acting with lightning speed, he sliced the shaft of the axe in half and impaled the monster in the heart, killing him quickly.

"Are you alright?" He yelled above the din of combat.

The mother cried into his chest as the boy huddled into his mother. After calming her down, he managed to move her over to Gamahana where she was safe.

Melissa was watching him as she continued to heal injured elves behind the cover of one of Naruto's massive summons, who could swat small groups of enemies away like they were flies. She was now seeing what a true hero was all about as he carried even more wounded and innocents to safety while protecting them with his life.

_'These people were going to kill us, but he's helping them and having us help too. Is this what Lady Jenny was talking about?'_ She wondered as she got back to work.

Soon, the invaders were thinned out and were beginning to retreat back into the forest. The elves started to cheep until a massive fireball detonated nearby, killing more of the defenders. After the ringing died down, Naruto could hear someone laughing with insanity in his voice.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA! At least put up a fight before I kill you! Ansel the Conquerer demands it!" The voice taunted as a figure came into view. It was a man, around his mid-thrities with silver hair and burning red eyes, dressed in a sorcerer's cloak.

"Hey you asshole! What the hell is your damage?" The short blond shinobi yelled at him, getting his attention.

"Ahhhh, so a mere brat has the courage to challenge me, does he? Fine then...DIE!" The maniac, now known as Ansel screamed as he chanted out a lightning spell.

Fortunately, this man had never faced anyone as fast as a shinobi before, so his execution was fairly slow, allowing Naruto time to evade and begin to plan a counter move. As he went into action, though, another large Orc had already chambered a killing blow, aimed right for his head. He didn't have time to prepare a Kawarimi as he prepare to meet his maker.

_'Baa-chan, Jenny-Obasan, Ila-neechan, Merrill-sensei, Genie-sensei...Goodbye.'_

Kami hadn't abandoned him yet, as the Orc's head just slid off of it's shoulders in a spray of blood. Standing over him with her sword held tightly, was his elven friend, Celecia.

"Come on! I'll back you up!" She cried as she kept him covered. Naruto grinned and nodded as he readied a brace of kunai and shuriken in each hand. As soon as he was sure of a clear shot, he let fly with his weapons. The weapons flew true, but bounced off of an unseen barrier of some kind.

"What? No way!" Naruto yelled.

The sorcerer smirked arrogantly at his young opponent. "Heh heh...What can such toys do to the mighty Ansel, brat?" He shouted as he charged up another spell.

Out of weapons, he dodged the next bolt as he switched tactics and used his chakra enhanced speed to close the distance between him and his attacker. In mid-charge, he made a small squad of Kage Bunshin, their sole purpose to keep him busy while he moved in for the kill.

However, Ansel had yet another surprize up his sleeve. He saw the clones getting in close, but smirked as he chanted off a quick wind spell that surrounded him and exploded outward, shredding the clones in one massive blast. "Is that all, brat?" He sneered as he looked for his next target. After a moment of searching, he found it in the form of Melissa and a small child she was carrying to safety.

Naruto saw who he was targeting as he moved to cover his unaccepting teammate as quickly as his body would let him. _'Please...let me make it in time...'_ He prayed as he rocketed towards her.

Just as the fireball was about to overtake her, Celecia pulled an unexpected move. She jumped infront of the fireball and managed to deflect it, but the recoil of the blast sent her flying back into a tree, stunning her as well as drawing blood from her head wound.

Naruto looked back at the elven girl who actually accepted for who he was and his anger skyrocketed. From all of the fighting and summoning Gamahana, his reserves were close to tapped out, he was out of ranged weapons, and what magic he knew he couldn't use for lack of a magic wand. He only had one option left.

_"Oi. Furball. You saw what happened."_

_**"Yeah. Yeah I did."**_

_"Then you know what I want."_

_**"Take it. Kick the shit out of that arrogant ass for me for hurting that hot babe."**_

Naruto sighed. Even when being serious, the Kyuubi was still a Grade-A pervert. Exhaleing deeply and letting out a bloodchilling warcry, the crimson chakra exploded out of the young jinchuuriki as he took on his two tailed form.

All present felt the massive wave of malice wash over them like a flood, making the Orcs and other beings attacking the village flee into the forest in terror. They knew by instinct that something far deadlier and more powerful than they had decsended upon the battlefield.

The elves that had been fighting were rooted to their spots in awe and horror at what had become of the young blond boy. Gamahana did his best to shield the eyes of the young ones from the fearsome sight. Even Ansel was showing signs of absolute fear and terror. He was now face to face with something that had crawled out of his nightmares and was given life, it's red prehensile tails swaying angrily with it's demonic glare cast straight into his eyes.

"Wh-What a-are you?" He stammered out as he tried to fire off another spell, only for Naruto to disappear from sight and reappear with his clawed fist sunk into his gut and completely shattering his protective barrier, making the so called conquerer double over in pain due to three of his ribs being destroyed. The once arrogant magician was now trying to plead for mercy with what breath he could manage.

"P-Please...I beg you...d-don't kill me..." He wheezed, only for the boy to lift him face to face by his neck.

_**"What happened to the people who begged YOU for mercy? All of the innocent women and children that you murdered? HUH? You ain't getting any from me, you slimy bastard! Enjoy your eternity in hell!" **_He roared back as he finally finished the greedy man off with a clawed thrust to his heart, skewering it and killing him instantly.

With a primal roar, Naruto ripped his hand from the man's corpse as the malevolent energy that surrounded him died down, again exhausting him beyond his limits and causing him to pass out.

All of the elves were still paralysed with fear at the savage way their tormentor was dispatched. None even made a move near him, fearing that he could wake up and rip them to shreds. They had never seen such awful power before, and hoped to never see it ever again in their long lifetimes.

Snapping out of her daze, Celecia stumbled to her feet as she ran over to her human friend in a panic. "Naruto? Naruto? Wake up!" She cried as she tried to rouse him, only for Genie to stop her.

"He'll be fine. Apparently, when he does this, it puts such a strain on his body that he passes out after the power leaves him. Let's just let him rest. For now, your village is safe and I doubt that anyone will attack you anytime soon." She reasoned.

Celecia nodded and she smiled down on the young hero of her village while she cradled him gently. The rest of her people got the hint that he wasn't dangerous and came out of their trances to approach the boy who saved their home.

Two days had passed since the battle had ended and Naruto had yet to awaken from his slumber. The entire village had come to take up vigil for their young hero and prayed for his recovery. Genie had been given the chance to explain what they were doing there in the first place to the elders of the village, which after aiding them in protecting their home, they were accepting of.

Naruto slowly opened his eyes, which felt heavy. His whole body felt like one big cramp and made of lead, so hard to move.

"Uhhhnnn...Where am I?" He mumbled groggily, throwing off a blanket while sitting up.

"Hey there. Glad you're awake." Celecia told him softly as she helped him sit up, smiling down at him affectionately.

"How long was I out?" He asked.

"About two days. Geez, kid. You sure like to make people worry, don't you?" Genie spoke out from a corner of the room that she was propped up against.

"Sorry, sensei." He replied morosely, only for her to chuckle.

"I'm just glad your okay, kiddo. It's not everyday that the elves see a human as a hero." The towering woman commented.

"What?" Was his intelligent response.

Celecia decided to take over the conversation from there. "Naruto...My people and I...we have something we want to tell you. My grandfather wants to tell you in person in the conference hall. I'll take you there." She told them as she helped Naruto to his feet.

As they left the house he was resting in and was being lead through the village, he noticed that the elves were looking at him with admiration and respect, something that was somewhat foregin to him, but highly appreciated. One old elf walked up to him and shook his hand heartily, thanking him for helping their people. Some of the small children were asking him to call out the "Big Froggy", as they had dubbed Gamahana. A few of the younger elf maidens were batting eyelashes at him to his embarrassment, but a quick glare from Celecia made them back off.

_'I don't think so. I'm claiming this one!'_ She thought to herself, glancing at the oblivious Naruto.

They soon reached the conference hall, where the elders of the village had gathered. Looking over to the side, he saw that Merrill and Melissa were already there and waved to them.

The head elder cleared his throat to begin the meeting. "Now, young human. I have been informed that you entered the forest to obtain a tree branch from a 500 year old oak, have you not?" He asked.

Naruto nodded in confirmation. "Yeah..." He replied, telling how his original got destroyed due to the backlash of his powers while protecting his teammate.

The old elf nodded. "You have also saved this village, as well. I will tell you that before the attack, we were prepared to have you all executed. However, your actions and those of your teammates have told us that you humans are not like the rest, not greedy or self-serving. I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart, young Naruto. I also want to gift you with this..." He said, pulling something out from behind him.

"This branch is from one of our eldest trees, here in the middle of our village. You have more than earned this reward, young one." He said, handing the branch over to the young demon vessel.

That wasn't the only surprize in store for them, as the elves had thrown something of a block party to celebrate their victory and the safety of the village, with the pint sized blond chibi as their guest of honor. The whole day was filled with singing, dancing, eating, and all around merriment that carried on all through the night. Naruto had never had so much fun in his life. In Konoha, he couldn't go to any festivals without asking for some serious trouble, the Kyuubi Festival / his own birthday, being all the evidence he needed.

When the next day came around, the team made their preperations to leave and go back home. The elders wished them a safe journey through the forest, which was now more calm with the demise of Ansel and a large amount to the Orcs and Trolls. Just before they could shove off, Celecia stopped Naruto and spun him around. What she did next shock the living hell out of the boy : The elf girl kissed him full on the lips, leaving him completely stunned and somewhat comatose. Genie shook her head slightly and shouldered her apprentice, getting the team on their way. Melissa watched the kiss and felt a stab in her heart.

_'I shouldn't even really care, but why did that bother me so much?'_ She wondered as she walked.

Meawhile, three girls in Konoha and one girl back at the Mylee temple had the indescribable urge to break something and want to strangle a certain girl for some reason.

_A/N: There, another chapter done and over with. Melissa gets an earful from Jenny and is forced to examine how she treats her chosen hero. Jenny isn't the type to just hand out the answer, because then she wouldn't be learning anything. _

_The team is being drawn closer together with this mission, as they don't want him to go it alone. He wouldn't have survived if they hadn't come with him. Also, Celecia makes her reappearance! The elven girl is now another of a line of young ladies that are after our blonde hero's heart and no, this will NOT be a harem. _

_Now, during the fight with Ansel (I made him up, so sue me.), he once again pulled out the Kyuubi's chakra to fight. In my story, the Kyuubi knows that his survival is linked to Naruto's and is willing to cooperate with him to live, not to mention the fact that Naruto draws in pretty women like Las Vegas would Tsunade. _

_Jiraiya and Tsunade now know of their beloved blond brat's survival and are working with the Toad elders feverishly for a way to bring him home. If they ever came to the Rune Soldier world first, what kind of hijinks could we expect from them?_

_In this next chapter, we introduce a real douchebag in my opinion, CONRAD! If you thought his reaction to Louie was bad, wait until you see how he takes being beaten by a thirteen years old!_


	7. Two VERY Different Blonds

_ Another chapter of Rune Ninja up and running. Now, we see some of the aftermath from their little field trip into the Tarsius Forest and how the explaination goes down with Carwess. Also, what many have been waiting for, the appearance of Conrad, the moron in shining armor! We will also see how things are going back in Konoha with our favorite alcoholic and pervert!_

_Enough from me, read the fic and enjoy! Don't forget to review, dammit!_

_**OHFUN MAGIC GUILD**_

It had been a week since their little debacle in the Tarsius Forest and the team's subsequent return home. Naruto took his hard earned wood to Carwess, where they entered into a long ceremony to craft a brand new magical wand. As soon as they were done, master and student met in his office to discuss what had happened during his adventure into the forest.

"Yeah, it was pretty crazy in there, sensei! First off, some Orcs and Trolls attacked us in broad daylight! Our fighting got the attention of some elves from a nearby village and kinda spooked them. They asked us what we were doing there and we told them, but that seemed to really piss them off! They took us to their village and held us prisoner, waiting to execute us. Before they could decide on what they wanted to do, they were attacked by a lot of Orcs and Trolls like what we took out earlier that day. One of them tried to kill us, but I managed to get it to cut me loose instead before I killed it. We then started to defend the village. I summoned one of my toad friends to help out by covering the wounded and non-combatants while Melissa healed them. We managed to get them to run, but some jerk that called himself Ansel showed up." Naruto told the elder magician until he saw Carwess freeze at the mention of the name.

"Are you sure he called himself Ansel?" Carwess asked with a tone of severity.

"Yeah! That jerk killed a lot of elves and he almost killed me and Melissa, too. He really pissed me off and I was running out of options, so I went Kyuubi on him and took him down for good. Why?"

"Naruto...that man was a wanted fugitive that tried to overthrow our kingdom once before. I managed to stop him, but he got away from me. I am glad that you finished what I could not. However, now you will have to be careful. He belonged to an order of magicians that practiced dark and demonic magic, called the Black Cross. He was probably in that forest to take more of the elves' magically charged wood from them to make something or complete something. Now that he's dead, the order will begin to sniff around. After the stir Ansel caused in the palace, they wouldn't make any moves in public, but watch yourself and watch out for your teammates." Carwess warned his young student.

"Wow...They almost sound like this group of shinobi back in my world called the Akatsuki. They wanted to capture all of the people like me for some reason and they were all S-Rank ninja or above. Very powerful and very dangerous. Two of them almost got me once, but Ero-Sennin showed up and saved me by driving them off. I guess he was good for something." Naruto replied.

_'Hmm...I guess even his world would have groups like this one.'_ Carwess reasoned.

"Again, be careful. Some of these magicians maybe on par with myself, so don't try to handle them alone. Send me some kind of word if you do have to face one of them and I will hurry to assist you, bringing as many of the instructors as I can." The elder magician assured the boy as he got along with his day.

_'May the gods protect you, my boy.'_

_**CITY STREETS**_

A throng of people were gathering on the main street through the town, many of them young women. The cause of all of this was there was a knight cantering down the street atop of his white stallion in armor. This knight was in his early twenties, hair blue eyes and long, wavy blond hair and chisled features, at least what you could see of him since he was covered from head to toe in armor plating. Many a young maiden in the streets were clamoring to get a good look at this handsome looking knight as he seemed to be in search of something.

He continued along his way until he came to a stop in front of a certain tavern. Dismounting from his horse, he swaggered inside and looked around at the tables, his eyes falling on Ila, who just happened to be sitting with Naruto eating lunch before heading back to the Guild.

The blond in armor swaggered his way over to their table and cleared his throat to get their attention. "Pardon me, but you appear to be a magician, and a most lovely one at that." He stated to them, causing Naruto to give him a funny look.

"What's up with Captain Obvious over here, Nee-chan?" Naruto asked her in confusion, making her laugh.

The knight's mirth was a little rattled, but went on. "Pardon me, little boy, but the adults are speaking right now. So kindly be silent." He told Naruto in a condescending tone that made Naruto's blood boil.

_'It's a taller, blond version of the teme! Even with a socialble personality, he'd STILL be an asshole!'_ Naruto fumed inwardly.

Ila could fell his indignation from where she was sitting and felt this guy out with her senses. _'Hmmm...A high amount of spiritual energy, but almost no physical energy at all. This guy's supposed to be a knight? Something's off here...'_ She wondered as she looked at his fancy sword.

_'I know what that is! It's a dancing sword! Why would a knight need one of those?'_ She wondered as the blabbering lunatic caught her staring at it and misunderstood.

"I can understand that you are taken with this handsome knight of Ramliearth, but I, Conrad, am already promised to another. I mean not to break the heart of a maiden so pure." The lunatic, now named Conrad, spouted while apparently off in his own little world.

"Geez, what the hell is this guy's problem? Did his mother drink while she was pregnant with him? Dropped on his head?" Naruto whispered to Ila who laughed some more.

Ila collected herself to address the 'knight'. "That's fine by me, Mr. Knight. Oh and don't underestimate Naruto here just because he's young. He's quite a capable magician himself." She told Conrad with a hint of pride in her voice.

Conrad sniffed at her words. "Is that so? No matter. I was wondering if you could show me to the Mylee Shrine?" He asked them.

The brother/sister duo's eyebrows raised for a moment, but decided to show him to the temple so he'll leave them alone later.

_**MYLEE TEMPLE**_

Naruto and Ila, after 30 exasperating minutes of listening to the preening psycho's caterwauling and proclaimations, finally made it to the Mylee Temple's front gates. The guards at the gates knew Naruto very well, so they let him and Ila in without question, but stopped Conrad. "Halt. State your business and name." One of the guards, a woman named Nina challenged.

"I am but a handsome, wandering knight of Ramliearth in search of his one true love." He explained to the two women while persenting them with a rose.

The two blinked in disbelief. "That only answered half of my question. Now, WHO are you?"

Naruto sighed while slapping his forehead with his palm. "His name is Conrad and he's here to look for someone. I'll keep an eye on him." Naruto to the gate guards, to which they nodded.

"All right, Naruto. Come on in and remember to say hello to Lady Jenny. She's been wanting to see you." Nina told him as they opened the gate, letting them in.

They walked through the temple grounds, letting Conrad search while keeping a careful eye on him. After an hour of searching and stretched patience, they finally came across a gazebo out by a small pond in the temple grounds where Merrill and Genie were, along with Melissa. As soon as Conrad's eyes fell on her, he bolted forward.

"Melissa, my love!" He crooned out loud.

Naruto and Ila stared in disbelief while Genie and Merrill were wondering who this idiot was. "Who the hell is this guy?" Merrill asked in a hushed tone to Naruto.

"Ila and I met this crooning, dancing jackass at our usual tavern while we were grabbing some lunch and he asked us for directions to the shrine, so here we are."

Melissa, however, went white as a sheet. "No...It can't be..." Melissa stammered out, making them worry.

"You know this guy, Melissa?" Naruto asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"Well...um..." She hesitated until Conrad spoke out.

"Come, my love. Why don't you tell them that I'm your...fiancee?" The idiot said, pausing for effect.

"FIANCEE?" They all exclaimed.

"Yes! She and I are destined to share the bonds of holy wedlock!" Conrad all but shouted in glee.

Melissa shook herself out of her shock to answer him. "No." She answered simply.

"B-but why not? I love you like a flower loves the sun! You are as beautiful as Toilet Cockroach Flowers!" He replied, begging her to reconsider.

"What the hell kind of flowers are those?" Naruto nearly shouted.

Conrad sniffed at him again. "I'll have you know, you ignorant little urchin, that those are the most beautiful flowers in all of Ramliearth." He told Naruto smugly as he went back to wooing Melissa, who looked like she was either going to kill herself, the moron in shining armor, or attempt to fade from existance in embarrassment.

The rest of them were either trying to stop themselves from bludgeoning this ass to death and/or keep their lunch down at the odd, yet natural way this dumbass was acting. _'Either he THINKS he's a knight or he esacped form the funny farm.'_ Genie thought in disgust.

Naruto watched the whole thing play out with amusement, but kept his laughter in check. An angry woman was the last thing he wanted to deal with. Tsunade and Sakura taught him that much. However, he couldn't help but notice the irony of all of this. Here was the knight in shining armor she was always whining about, but she was completely disgusted with him. _'There's probably a story behind this.'_ He thought.

He didn't have that long to ponder the situation before him as he felt Melissa tug at his arm, taking it into hers.

"Go home, Conrad! Find someone else to love you!" Sh yelled at the mentally challenged man.

"What? Why? Just what is this little ragamuffin commoner to you, anyway?

Melissa swallowed hard. "This boy is the hero and champion that I am bound to serve." She admitted to Conrad through tightly clenched eyes.

Naruto scoffed lightly. "Oh, so NOW I'm your champion. Thanks a lot, Melissa."

Conrad looked like his little dream world shattered in him. "This cannot be! Impossible!"

Naruto remembered meeting people with overly inflated egos before, like Neji and Sasuke and Kiba to an extent, but this pompous ass really ground away at him. Furthermore, Melissa was hiding something from him that was crucial information and he was determind to find out just what he was being dragged into.

"It's the truth, Conrad, even if you don't like it! Naruto Uzumaki was revealed to be the champion I am bound to serve by Mylee Himself. I will serve him and no one else. I want that to be perfectly clear." Melissa railed into the tall man.

"That can't be right! He's only a commoner mage and still just a child! Probably just some nameless orphan off of the streets, no doubt, so how could you pick him over some one like me? Someone with long flowing hair, long legs, able to write and recite poetry, not to mention far better looking than some filthy little oaf off of the streets." Conrad whined.

Naruto bristled at the comments made about his orphan status and Merrill was just a hair away from making him into a human pincushion. The Naruto back in Konoha would have already Rasengan'd this guy into oblivion, but he restrained himself. The others could feel the killing intent rolling off of him as he struggled to maintain his calm. Ila helped him by placing a calming hand on his shoulder.

"Thank, nee-chan." He whispered to her as he collected himself.

"Go home, Conrad! I won't tell you this again! Go back and bother somebody else!" The priestess yelled at him.

Conrad looked like Gamabunta stepped on him. However, Naruto knew that his type wouldn't give up without a fight. Who was Conrad to disappoint him?

"I WILL NOT ACCEPT THIS...THIS FARCE! YOU MUST HAVE TRICKED MY DARLING MELISSA WITH YOUR SORCERY, YOU FOUL DEMON!" Conrad roared in anger.

The demon comment finally pushed the young shinobi over the edge. "So...I'm a demon, huh?" Naruto replied quietly, his bangs hiding his face. He looked back up at the arrogant knight with his once crystal blue eyes now a violent crimson, Ki exploding from him and driving the fool to his knees. "Watch what you say, you asshole. You have no idea what my life's been like because of jerks like you." Naruto snarled at the man before releasing his Ki and letting his eyes return to normal.

Now, a smart man would have started running fo the hills, but who ever said that Conrad was particularly intelligent? The arrogant knight walked up to Naruto, pulled out a velvet glove, and slapped him across the face. "I CHALLENGE YOU TO A DUEL OF HONOR!" The idiot screamed.

"What was that?" Naruto asked dangerously, his patience at it's breaking point.

"YOU HEARD ME, YOU COMMONER SCUM! I WILL KILL YOU AND BREAK YOUR WICKED HOLD ON MY BELOVED!"

Before Naruto could reply to that, Melissa beat him to it. "Naruto accepts this challenge. If you win, I will go back to Ramliearth with you...and become your wife. I you lose, you will leave me alone forever." She told Conrad.

Naruto looked at her in total disbelief for a moment while what he dragged him into set in. He really didn't like where this was going.

"Melissa, you and I need to talk. NOW." He told her in a harsh voice while using his surprizing strength to drag her out of earshot.

The tone of voice the boy used allowed for no arguments, so she allowed herself to be dragged off to the side. He then stopped and fixed her with a piercing glare. "What the hell did you do? Why are you dragging me into this? At first, you're ashamed to be seen around me, not you want me to fight on your behalf?" He snarled at her.

Melissa sighed deeply as she told him the truth behind her and Conrad. Melissa's father had given her hand in marriage to Conrad, but she had other ideas. She packed up and abandoned her family to join the Mylee order to gain the protection of the church. However, Conrad wasn't one to give up so easily and he managed to find a way around that, which scared the daylights out of her.

"So that's what this is about? Just because you didn't want to marry this guy?"

"Yes! Can't you see WHY I wouldn't want to marry him?"

Naruto thought on that for a moment. "I can see your point, but why didn't you lay down the law with your folks?"

"I already tried that! He just wouldn't listen to me! Conrad's family is extremely rich and influential, and my parents wanted to match their standing in the royal court! They wanted nme to marry when I was older so that they could increase their influence, but he was so snobbish, arrogant, irresponsible and a total moron! That's why I left them to become a priestess!"

Naruto could feel a headache coming on. He really didn't want to be involved in this little drama, he really didn't. Melissa nearly got him killed his first day about the town by screaming that he was a demon of some kind. Then she goes out of her way to badmouth him to the other priestesses. Thankfully, she wasn't completely successful. He didn't see any reason why he should help her at all since all she did was cause trouble and insult him. As luck would have it for Melissa, Conrad was itching for a fight.

"You may be her champion, but I will show you and the world that we of noble birth and blood will always be better than you common dogs! If you do not accept my challenge, I will expose you for the coward and demon you are, boy." Conrad sneered.

That was the final straw. Naruto lept up and lashed out with a lightning quick haymaker that had the knight wannabe sprawled out on the ground, groaning in pain.

"Challenge accepted." Naruto muttered coldly as he walked off to let out some steam.

Conrad picked himself up and tried to walk off in a dignified manner, he stumbled and turned around. "I'll remember this! I will defeat you and prove that you are only a misguided brat for thinking that one such as you could ever best nobility!" He shouted as he stumbled away.

Said woman tried to stop Naruto by putting her hand on his shoulder gently like Ila does to calm him down, but it didn't work, as he just shoved her hand away. "Just...leave me alone for a little while. I need to think for a bit." He told her softly as he lept away across the rooftops.

Melissa never felt as bad in her life as she did at this moment. She was terrible to him, but expected him to fight for her. _'Now it'll be even harder to gain his trust...What'll I do now?'_

"I hope you're happy with yourself." Ila said to her coldly, fixing the priestess with a withering glare. "First, you openly hate him and try to spread lies about him and now you want him to fight your battles for you. That's low, even for you. If Naruto gets hurt or killed in this duel, I'll deal with you myself. This is no threat, but a promise." The red-haired young woman vowed as she left in search of Naruto.

Genie and Merrill shook their heads. "Melissa, you really screwed up. That kid's been through enough without getting dragged into your personal problems. If you had asked him to help you, he probably would have, but no. You went and forced him into this mess. Just know that if something happens to him, we're through as a team. This is your last chance, Melissa. Make it count." Genie told her as she and Merrill left the area.

Melissa collapsed to her knees. She didn't know what to do. She had pissed off Naruto, her teammates, and Ila. She had officially run out of friends and people she could talk to. She picked herself up and prayed that Naruto would make it through this in one piece. Conrad seemed very confident for some strange reason and that scared her. He wouldn't be that cocky if he didn't have something up his sleeve.

_**KONOHA**_

Almost as soon as Tsunade was told by Jiraiya that he was alive, she gathered only the most trusted people she knew to tell them the news while the Toads and Jiraiya worked on a seal array to open a path between their world and the one Naruto was stuck in. Gathered in her office were Kakashi, Anko, and Shizune, who were all wondering what they were doing there in the first place. After a few moments of waiting, Tsunade walked into the office briskly and sat down, an odd smile on her face.

"We've come as ordered, Lady Hokage." Kakashi addressed his superior.

"Good, good. Now what I am about to tell you will be classified an SS-Rank secret. NO ONE, will speak of this to anyone else or a certain group of indiviuals will come swarming in on us like a plague." The beautiful Sannin instructed them as she placed a silencing jutsu on the walls.

After they all swore to secrecy, she dropped her bombshell. "Naruto Uzumaki...is alive." She told them with barely restrained joy.

All three Jounin were in shock as they heard the good news. "Wha? Where is he? Is he alright?" Anko asked in a near panic.

"Calm down, Anko! He's doing just fine where he is..." She soothed the Snake Kunoichi as she told them of the world Naruto found himself in and what he's been up to these days. Anko and Kakashi chuckled, as they knew that the first opportunity he got Naruto probably went off to explore his new world, while Shizune was worried that he wasn't eating right or enough, generally being a mother hen. All three were, however, pissed that some ignorant people went off and labeled him as a demon and a monster, but grateful that others took him under their wing and taught him their skills.

The next bombshell was dropped when Tsunade announced that Jiraiya and the Toads were working on a seal array that could potentially pull Naruto back to their world, or at least bridge the gap between them. Almost immeadiately, all three volunteered to join the group that would go get him and bring him back, but Tsunade wasn't sure how many people could join them. Kakashi stepped aside, but he was nominated as proxy Hokage in Tsunade's stead when the time came.

Without warning, Jiraiya revealed himself in the room with more news for them. "Hime, the seal will be ready in a week's time. Only six can go, so it will be myself, you and four others." He informed her as he took off again to Myoboku Mountain to continue working in the formulations for the seal. Tsunade dismissed the small gathering to go back to their duties as Tsunade cracked open a small bottle of sake.

"Now, who to bring with us?" Tsunade pondered as she knocked back a small tug of the liquor.

Elsewhere in the village, three girls were currently unaware of what was going on. Hinata had continued on with her training in the Jyuuken and had finally beaten Neji in a spar. Sakura was currently living with the Yamanaka's and working in their flower shop along with Ino. Since Shikamaru had made Chuunin and had other duties to fill, there was an opening on Team 10, so Sakura filled it. They were getting ready for the next Chuunin Exams that were to be held in Suna this time around within the next two months with the help of Asuma and sometimes Kakashi. All three had taken to lessons on medical jutsu and theory with Tsunade and Shizune and were branching into their different fields of expertise. Hinata and Ino were turning out to be excellent in creating salves, poisons, and antidotes. Sakura's talents lay in healing the wounded and repairing the body. All three went into this training with one thought on their minds : _If a medic had gone with the team, everyone would have come back alive...We still miss you.'_

_A/N: Chapter seven done. Sorry about not updating in a while, but I had a new brain child on my hands and had to get it out. On top of that, I've been busy with my new toy, my motorcycle! I went on a small trip to Santa Cruz with my old man, who's 55 and still riding his Harley-Davidson._

_ Anyway, now we see the arrival of the imfamous Conrad and how he takes having the spot he believes is his taken by a boy almost half his age and half his height. Melissa is starting to get with the program and is starting seeing Naruto for who he is, but many of her old habits are coming back to haunt her as she used Naruto to fight her battles without even asking him to do it. Naturally, this would enrage the others. Now Merrill and Genie are on the brink of casting Melissa out of their team should Naruto get hurt or killed. Ila, well, needless to say, is ready to go to war with the priestess should the worst happen._

_ On the homefront in Konoha, life has been going on as it should. It's been at least four months since Naruto 'died' and some of them haven't gotten over it yet. However, Tsunade and Jiraiya know of Naruto's survival and are carefully spreading the word. They have to be careful with that information, due to the Akatsuki still being out there. Now, I have the task of choosing who gets to go to the Rune Soldier world and retrieve their errant blond shinobi. Who do YOU all think should go? Tsunade and Jiraiya are already locked with Kakashi being the proxy Hokage in her stead. Who all gets to go?_


	8. A Kitsune Stands Tall

_Hey y'all, I'm back with another chapter! This is the one that many have been waiting for, Conrad's ass kicking and humiliation! Also, the Konoha group's coming is close at hand! Who's to say how they'll react to meeting everyone? Also, the girls who like our chibi blond will get added competition in the form of Sakura and Hinata, so they'll have their work cut out for them._

_**OHFUN : GENIE'S CABIN**_

On the outer reaches of the city proper, Genie had set up residence a few years ago in an old hunter's cabin that suited her simple needs quite well. It was far enough away from the city to ward off most prying eyes and preserved her privacy, but close enough so that should she need to go into town, it wasn't an all day affair, merely a couple hour's walk and she reached Ohfun with enough time to accomplish her business and be on her way. Now, with the advent of Naruto and him introducing her to chakra and a few of the shinobi arts, this trip was cut down considerably. The veteran warrior utilized chakra in her daily life now from making her daily chores easier to her daily training regimen. Indeed, she had much to be grateful for from her short blond apprentice.

Getting out of that line of thought, we come to Genie's humble cabin to see her young charge and teammate having at some straw training posts to sharpen up his swordsmanship skills for the fight in a few hours. After all, he only had one week to train as hard as he could before he faced Conrad. He knew that something was off about the way the 'Knight' carried himself, but he seemed far too confident to dismiss as a serious threat. He discussed the matter with Genie, who shared his suspicions about Conrad. The armor he was wearing was heavy plate mail armor with chainmail and heavy leather backing, weighing close to what Naruto himself weighed, around 80 to 100 pounds. Conrad looked like he was flushed and out of breath when he reached the temple and ran to Melissa, struggling a bit to stand up. A real Knight would have been able to carry that weight easily, just as she did when she was a merc. He also moved around somewhat sluggishly, again raising their doubts as to Conrad's claims of being a knight. This was also coupled with some background information provided by Jenny through Melissa, who Naruto really didn't feel like talking to as of late, as to Conrad being trained as a magician, not a knight as last Melissa heard.

However, Merrill had seen Conrad pull off something very disturbing one night at the beginning of the week long wait and had conveyed what she saw to the others :

_**FLASHBACK**_

_It was nightfall in the city and all was quiet, until the sounds of a struggle and a scream pierced the night from the business district, a jeweler to be precise. A band of brigands had broken into a jeweler shop and had ransacked the entire stock and the leader of the band even had the Jeweler's daughter hefted over his shoulder, his sword pointed at the old man's throat. Merrill had seen it play out from a adjacent rooftop, where she was working one of her part time jobs as a chimney sweeper. She was reaching for her daggers, but remembered that she was on the job and didn't have her weapons or tools on her. _

_'Damn! Perfect time to be without a weapon...' She grumbled as she brought her hands up into a handseal, getting ready to use the Henge to transform into a city guard officer to hopefully scare them off._

_Suddenly, the brigands found their paths blocked by a massive white stallion with someone in the saddle. Upon closer inspection, that person turned out to be none other than Conrad! 'What the hell is that doofus doing here?' The short thief wondered as she paid closer attention to what was happening._

_The arrogant dumb ass descended down from his mount and faced the robbers with a smirk on his face. "Halt right there, you villains!" He declared._

_The lead robber was somewhat confused as to what this guy thought he was doing, but he was running out of time before the city guard came. "Don't know who ya are, but if you don't move, me and my boys'll have ta carve a path right through ya." He growled, turning his blade on the 'Knight'. _

_With a confident smirk and chuckle, Conrad drew his sword and pointed it directly at the bandits. "Come here. I think you and I should dance together. Shall I lead?" He announced to them, again confusing them and Merrill._

_"What the hell kind of fruity line was that?" Merrill muttered to herself as the bandits all charged in._

_As quickly as the fight began, it had ended. Conrad had seemingly taken out every single robber in less that 30 seconds, hitting each one in a vital part of their bodies._

_"What the hell? I gotta tell Genie and the kid!" She thought as she ran off from the roof top while below, Conrad was hamming it up and using that opportunity to spread rumors about his young opponent in a week's time. The rumors spread like wildfire, just like when Melissa did the exact same thing to him months ago when he first arrived. That was something she now deeply regretted._

_Speaking of which, Melissa's rival, a fellow priestess named Isabelle, had gotten wind of the young shinobi being her rival's champion and had begun to lay into her. The blond priestess and her two followers had begun to rib and lay into her with snide remarks and insults to her and her champion._

_"So, Melissa, how is your vertically challenged Champion these days? I'm hearing all kinds of nasty rumors about that little urchin brat and that he's gone into hiding from a challenger. Just who is this Conrad and I wonder if he'd be interested in a REAL priestess like myself, not a joke like you." The snobbish woman giggled as she and her flunkies ran off._

_Melissa was left clenching her fists in anger at the harsh, mocking words that were directed at her. This was the same treatment she subjected her own chosen Champion to not too long ago and she had done her own fair share of damage and rumor-mongering against him. Now that she needed his help and she forced him into a potentially deadly duel, he wouldn't even look at her, just throwing himself into his training. Her own friends and teammates were threatening her with abandonment should the worst come to pass, with Ila being far more vocal about it. However, one could say that what comes around, goes around, and karma finally caught up with her._

_The red-headed young woman adored the blond boy as if he were her flesh and blood sibling, having grown very attached to him and he to her. Melissa knew that what Ila spoke of was no threat, but a promise should she lose one of the most important people in her life. The normally gentle bespectacled young woman was usually passive, but turned into a serious threat when Naruto's welfare was threatened. _

_Even young Denise and many of the elder priestesses refused to have anything to do with her. Her three usual followers were unsure as to what to do, so they stayed away for the time being. What they heard and what they saw Whenever the young acolyte saw her in passing, Denise always had a glare of death waiting for her. The day after the challenge was issued and Naruto was forced into it, Lady Jenny called Melissa into her office, where she had an ear full waiting for her._

_"How could you, Melissa? First you deny that he is your chosen Champion, then you throw him into this duel and claim him at your convenience? Just pray, pray Melissa, that Naruto lives through this, victorious or not, as your career as a Mylee priestess rides on this." Jenny told her with an angry edge to her normally kind and calm voice as the woman sent Melissa away._

_Her own two teammates, Merrill and Genie, had also taken a shine to him, seeing him for who and what he really was. Merrill had taken to him in the same way that Ila had, seeing as she had to raise herself in the same manner as Naruto did, all by themselves, and she was fiercely protective. However, Genie had taken him under her wing and was teaching him all she knew, almost like a mother would teach her own child. Melissa had never seen Genie take to ANYONE like that and in such a short amount of time. The look she had on the day Conrad made the challenge was that of an angry mother figure, the same enraged look Lady Jenny gave her as she was dismissed from her office. She couldn't even show her face in the tavern that she used to frequent anymore due to the owner and staff nearly blacklisting her, as they had already done to Conrad. Tessa, one of the waitresses and a good friend of Naruto had to be held back the moment Conrad walked in and began his slandering campaign and was a hair away from knocking Melissa's block off on sight for what she started._

_**FLASHBACK END**_

Melissa was currently en route to the stadium, along with most of the city, trying to forget the nightmare her life had become in the past month. Upon entering the stadium and making her way towards the seating, she saw her teammates and Ila, so she sought to sit with them.

"What are you doing here?" Ila asked coldly, her emerald colored orbs narrowed.

"Naruto IS the Champion that I am bound to serve, so I am here to show my support." Melissa answered back stiffly if not somewhat uncomfortable with the narrowed eyes gazing in her direction as she tried to look away into the arena. Merrill and Genie shook their heads and turned their attention back to the arena, where the duel was set to begin shortly.

Mocking, annoying laughter was heard off to their left, so the group turned their eyes over to the source, Isabelle. "So Melissa, you actually had the nerve to show up to support that little urchin. Very impressive." The blond priestess commended mockingly, to which her cronies laughed.

Melissa gritted her teeth, seething in anger, but that was nothing compared to what the others felt. Pure, unadulterated rage was flowing through them and they would love nothing more than to skin this woman and her flunkies, but they were in a holy place so they had to control themselves. However, some of Naruto's prankster spirit had rubbed off on Ila as she quietly cast a minor wind spell. Just enough of a gust to blow up the skirts that the three were wearing and expose their undergarments to the world. Isabelle and her two followers shrieked in embarrassment as they ran away from the group, who were too busy laughing up a storm at the prank Ila pulled.

"That was priceless!" Merrill choked out in her laughter.

Melissa had to admit to herself that it was very funny and Isabelle got a form of comeuppance to boot, so she let out a few chuckles, her anger dissipating rapidly.

_**STADIUM WAITING AREA**_

Down in the lower waiting deck of the stadium where fighters would prepare themselves, Naruto was meditating and concentrating while Carwess and Jenny looked on. They could feel his rage just below the surface, but he was holding it back and keeping his cool. The two thought back over the past month and the propaganda nightmare Conrad had caused for Naruto and destroyed most of his hard earned reputation and respect. Jenny was furious that someone who claimed to be a hero had gone on a slandering spree, smearing the name of a boy barely in his teens. She and a large majority of her order refused to believe the ugly rumors that were in circulation while condemning the actions of the knight imposter.

Carwess couldn't believe that someone would sink so low as to slander the honor of a child, but his foray through Naruto's memories months ago taught him better than that. It was an ugly side of humanity that he was hoping to never again see in his lifetime, but this arrogant knight had tried his patience too long. Before Carwess could put a stop to Conrad's machinations and call off the duel, Naruto stopped him.

"No. I want to show everyone what a real hero should at least act like. Also, I gave my word that I would fight and I'll fight him, and win. Nobody calls people like me and Merrill-neechan worthless orphans and gets away with it. I've dealt with people like him for as long as I can remember, and that's already too long. Let him spread whatever he wants. It'll just make his defeat that much more humiliating and show them who I really am." The blond boy told the two elders with confidence.

The two leaders were stunned at the willpower that Naruto was displaying at this moment, but even more than stunned they were proud of how he was handleing this. It told of a wisdom beyond his years, accumulated over the course of a harsh life not of his making.

_'I was right and so was Mylee...this boy will be greater than any other. Such conviction and inner strength is seldom found in anyone, much less in one so young.'_

_'Whoever his parents were, I'm sure that they would be so very proud of him right now. Naruto my boy, I am proud of you.'_

The two of them left Naruto to his preparations as they left for the VIP box over looking the arena.

_**SEAL ROOM, TOAD DOMAIN**_

The day had finally come and all preparations had been made. Six shinobi had been gathered from Konoha and brought to the Toad Domain, Myouboku Mountain. Tsunade, Jiraiya, Anko, Sakura, Hinata, and Shikamaru were all sitting on a hexagonal diagram at the six points, each sitting in the lotus position of meditation and holding up a different hand seal in deep concentraition. Each of them had their reasons for coming along on this very important mission, which had been deemed S-Rank. Hinata and Sakura were both no-brainers, they wanted to see the boy they fell in love with. Ino originally wanted to go, but Inoichi didn't feel right with her going. However, he couldn't stop Sakura from going. Hiashi gave Hinata his blessing to go and retrieve Naruto, his daughter being one of the first of their world to venture into a new dimension. Anko wanted to see for herself that Naruto was alright and it would have been generally inadvisable to stand in her way. Shikamaru volunteered to go due to his lingering guilt over the results of the Sasuke retrieval mission. He wanted to go and bring the final member of the team home where he belonged.

"Keep up a steady flow of chakra into the seal, do not let it waver!" Fukasaku instructed as Shima finished the final array of the Dimensional Door Seal while he homed in on Naruto's chakra signature via the Toad contract.

Thanks to Gamabunta and Gamakichi bringing back bits of earth from the other dimension, they had something to lock on to with the array and set up three Anchor Points, one in the basement of Hokage Tower, one here in the Seal Room, and where ever they set up base, but it would have to be rich in spiritual energy. In their world, Mt. Myoboku and many temples met the requirements, as well as Hokage Tower due to the Shodaime and him using his Mokuton to build the tower.

With him, Jiraiya had an exact duplicate of the array, so that they could set up the array and bridge the two worlds together in secure locations. With this array, there were seven points to it, in order to accommodate Naruto when they found him.

"I've got a lock on the gaki's chakra! Get ready!" Fukasaku shouted as the light radiated from the array brightened in intensity. It was finally time to go. The two Toad elders brought their webbed hands together in the Ram seal and shouted out.

_**"DIMENSION DOOR SEAL...ACTIVATE!"**_The pair roared out as they slammed their hands down on the array to open the doorway to where Naruto was waiting for them.

_'I'm coming, my baby.'_Tsunade thought.

_'Naruto-kun, we're coming to bring you home.'_Sakura and Hinata told themselves.

_'Hang in there, gaki. Nee-chan's coming to take you home, where you belong.'_Anko said inwardly.

With a blinding flash of light, the rescue party disappeared from this world, leaving behind small patches of smoke where they once sat.

"Good luck..." The two elders called out as they began to wait fot their first contact from Jiraiya to tell them if the seal was successful.

_**IN THE FOREST JUST OUTSIDE OF OHFUN**_

A massive flash of light exploded in the skies above the forests outlining Ohfun and the six inter-dimensional travellers dropped to the ground in ungraceful heaps.

"Oooww...I think I landed on my weapons pouch..." Sakura moaned out while Shikamaru called out from a tree, where he was hanging by his vest from a branch.

"Man...This sucks already." The lazy Nara whined until that was replaced with a surprised yelp. Anko threw a kunai at the branch that held him, snapping it and dumping him to the ground.

"Stop whining already. Hey, where's Lady Tsunade and the perv?" Anko called out to the younger shinobi, until a voice answered her call.

"Over here. This place doesn't seem all that different from our world." Tsunade commented with Jiraiya in tow, being tugged by his ear.

"Owowowow! Aw, come on, Hime! It was an accident, I swear!" The great pervert whined. Apparently, he took advantage of the way they landed. He landed with his face shoved into her more than generous bust, but stayed there a little too long. The beautiful Sannin caught his pervy grin and yanked him along by his ear like a naughty child.

Ignoring the pervert's cries of pain, the group huddled together in order to get a feel for their surroundings. Anko had sent out a few of her snake summons, since she was told that the Kuchiyose would still work, and found the way to a nearby city, only a few minutes travel if they traveled through the trees in the forest. With their destination set, the party took to the trees and sped along their way to the city.

Within a few minutes of travel, they reached the gates to the city but were halted by two of the city guards. "Halt there. Please state your names and purpose of your visit." The first guard requested.

Tsunade stepped forward to answer them. "We are just looking for a member of our village that was taken away from us in an accident. We are on our way to a city called Ohfun, where he may be, and bring him home."

The guard got a bewildered look in his face. "Ma'am, this IS the city of Ohfun." He replied.

The group's expressions turned upbeat. "Naruto's here!" Tsunade gasped happily.

The second guard's eyes went wide with recognition. "Naruto? You guys know him? Come to think of it, some of you are wearing the same symbol that he does..."

"That's great and all, but do you know where in the city he might be?" Jiraiya asked of them.

"Oh, he should be in the Mylee Arena at the opposite edge of the city. Just keep heading north and you can't miss it." The guards supplied helpfully.

"Thank you. We'll be off now." Tsunade thanked them as they took to the rooftops, northern bound.

The first guard had a slight nose bleed. "Did you see the SIZE of her chest? Whoa!"

"Yeah! That other one in the long coat was a real hottie, too! I wonder if all the women where that kid comes from are that hot?" The second replied as they got back to their duties.

_**MYLEE STADIUM**_

Tsunade and Co. arrived at the stadium in time to catch the beginning to the fight and what was said. She was furious that these people were saying such nasty things about him, but spotted a small group of people that were cheering her surrogate son quite loudly. She and the group made their way over to the friendlier part of the crowd.

Meanwhile, Janet, Joan, and Anna spotted the group and recognized the symbol they bore. "Hey...Isn't that the same insignia that Naruto always wears on that headband? He said that the people of his village wore that symbol. Are they from his village?" Anna wondered.

"I don't know...Three of them are our age, maybe we can ask them." Janet suggested as they followed the group.

Tsunade walked up to Ila. "Excuse me, but are these seats taken?" She asked.

The red-headed young woman looked over to see who was talking to see a tall blond woman with honey hazel eyes and quite an impressive bustline standing there. Behind her, was an older man with long, spiky white hair, a brunette with a long coat on and little else underneath, and three children around Naruto's age. One wore an olive green vest and had his hair in a topknot with a bored expression. A girl that had milky white eyes, a beige parka and dark pants. The last one had bright pink hair, emerald eyes the same shade as her own, wearing a red colored dress. They all had the same or similar style sandals as Naruto and bore the same symbol.

"So that's what other ninja look like...the blond woman is really pretty..." Anna said, awe-struck.

"Yeah, she is, but so is that other woman in the coat. She looks really strong." Joan added.

"There's other kids Naruto's age there and...wait a minute...pink hair? Naruto told us a story once that had a girl with pink hair, his teammate. Do you think that could be her?" Janet asked her two companions.

"I think so. What was her name? Started with an "S"...It sounded really pretty." Joan answered with a question of her own. After a few moments of thinking, Janet's eyes went wide.

"Aha! Sakura! That was the name!" She nearly yelled. Unfortunately, Anko happened to overhear them.

"How did you her name? Who are you?" Anko asked her with an edge to her voice, slightly coiling herself like a snake ready to strike.

Ila gave them a grin. "It's simple. Naruto is from there and he wears the same symbol, so logically you must be from the same place. Also, he's told us soem tales about people he knew and met, things he'd accomplished and done." She replied, saving the three girls from a rough interrogation.

"You...know Naruto-kun?" Hinata ventured to ask.

Ila took a look at the speaker and saw the white eyed girl. '_She looks like a real cutie pie...'_ The young sorceress in training thought before she answered.

"Yes, I do. all of us here do, as he's a good friend of mine and I kind of see him as a younger brother. This is Merrill and Genie, they work together with him on the same team." She told the Konoha ninja as she introduced themselves. Merrill gave them a friendly wave while Genie nodded her head and grinned.

"This is Denise. She's an apprentice priestess with the Mylee order and another good friend of Naruto's. Finally, we come to Melissa." Ila told them, her tone growing cold at the mention of Melissa's name. The ninja were all puzzled by her hostility, but Tsunade, unfortunately for the priestess, remembered the name from Gamakichi's accounts in that world. The woman went deathly silent for a moment.

"Hime, are you alright?" Jiraiya asked his long time friend and ex-teammate until she snapped out of her silence to deliver a sharp slap to Melissa's face, dropping her quickly. The rest were stunned by her sudden and harsh action, but from the adventurers understood, Tsunade was rightfully upset. This woman was not only Naruto's leader, but nearly his mother in all but blood, so the rest of the Ohfin group decided to stay back.

"So...YOU were the one that nearly had my baby murdered and tried to make his life here a living hell...How DARE you..." Tsunade snarled as she advanced on the fallen priestess until Anko and Jiraiya held her back.

"Lady Tsunade, calm down!" Anko yelled as she struggled to restrain her leader and adoptive mother.

"Hime! Now is not the time for this. Calm down and let's let this play out." The white-maned ninja told her sternly. An enraged Tsunade in a densely packed area was a recipe for disaster and massive amounts of chaos and mayhem.

The three young apprentices were shocked that this woman hit Melissa like she did, but understood why. Melissa was one of Naruto's biggest detractors and this woman sounded like she was Naruto's mother. A mother would brave anything to protect her child and would lash out at anyone who harmed them.

Melissa was cradling her now swelling cheek from where she fell to the ground, tears leaking out. "I'm...so sorry..." She whispered.

"That's not good enough. You have a LOT of nerve, young lady. That boy has been through the lion's share of problems and trouble, and then some because of ignorant and arrogant people like you. Be sure that we are NOT finished yet, not by a long shot." The blond Sannin told her with an air of authority that was easily seen along with the fury of an angry mother.

Genie could see that she was used to issuing orders and was a combat veteran herself, as well as the white-haired old man and the brunette with the trench coat. However, something just didn't add up with the buxom blond in her estimation, she had a gut feeling that Tsunade was hiding something in plain sight but just couldn't pin it down. Her gaze then went to the man with long while hair and strange sandals. He was also carrying a massive scroll across his back, giving her the first impression that he was some sort of magician. However, the way his eyes took in everything and how alert he seemed made her guess otherwise.

Anko was next. Almost all of her movements reminded her of a snake, even her grin had a serpentine quality to them. Her choice of clothing was revealing at best, but Genie knew she wasn't one to talk with her ensemble. The body one did see was very toned and supple, but also very strong. The way her eyes darted about and how she coiled when Ila called them out let her know that she was also a combat veteran. Now she moved to the young ones. The one with the pineapple like ponytail and vest seemed lazy and lethargic, but somehow hid a calulating mind. The one with pink hair was paying everyone present with rapt attention, her hand always near a leg pouch that was just like the one Naruto wore. Finally she came across the girl with clear lavender colored eyes. At first, the ex-merc thought her to be blind, but remembered that there were people in his village that had eyes like hers, and they had beyond human eyesight.

The tension soon died down and the two sides became much more peaceable afterwards, with Melissa staying silent and looking at the ground. Merrill, Denise, and Ila were grinding their teeth at Sakura for a little while, but backed off when they heard the rest of the story from the elder blond. Sakura admitted them that over time, she came to really care about Naruto in her own way, but she admitted that her obsession with Sasuke got in the way of many things, including her good sense. The girls were treated to stories of what Naruto was like when he was younger by Anko, who watched him grow up fondly and tried her level best to protect him. The other women and girl knew that she greatly cared for Naruto, but couldn't be everywhere at once. Shikamaru was telling them of some of their classroom antic and pranks that they liked to pull.

While Denise was happy that she found two girls her age to talk with, she knew that these two kunoichi were some serious competition. Sakura was the girl whom the object of her affection fought some massive battles for and Hinata was the girl who was crushing on Naruto for years.

_'Great...Now it's not just that Elf chick, but THESE two as well. I really need to kick it up a notch if I want him in the end.'_The russet-haired girl reasoned. She moved on to the elder two women in the group. She could buy the notion that Tsunade might be his mother like her fellow apprentices believed. They both had somewhat of the same mannerisms and hair, not to mention the fact that she got all bent out of shape with Melissa for how she treated Naruto.

Tsunade wanted to withhold her opinion for when she would get to better know these women who had taken Naruto in and supported him until after this duel he seemed to be in. She and her team took their seats as the warriors came out onto the battlefield. They were shocked when they saw that their errant blond no longer wore that orange jumpsuit. He now wore dark blue pants and a matching short sleeve tunic that showed his arms, which looked very well toned for a boy his age, still wore his thigh holster, hip pouch, shinobi sandals, fingerless gloves, and Konoha headband, but also now wore light armor. He had on a small protector that consisted of an armor plate over his lead shoulder and a small breast plate along with greaves.

Sakura, Hinata, and Denise all blushed at the sight of the boy they all liked. Hinata and Sakura had never seen him like this before, but to them, he looked...hot! Anko shook herself out of her shock and tried to reconcile the brat she knew to the one she now saw. She had to admit that his new clothes and armor made him look like a real badass. Jiraiya had to admit the same thing, that his student looked intimidating. Tsunade was smiling at the sight.

_'My baby is growing up...He looks so much like his father, that it's almost surreal.'_ She thought

Up in the VIP box, Lady Jenny and Carwess oversaw the proceedings. With a nod, Jenny signaled for the fighters to meet in the middle of the arena while she performed the Shunshin to get down there in a hurry, carrying with her two armbands as she stood between them. "This match will take place under the watchful eyes of Mylee, God of Battle! This battle will be fought without magic and to prevent the usage of magic, the Sorcerer's guild has kindly crafted these Magical Restriction Armlets which will not only negate any spell usage, but also give the wearer a shock." She announced as she held out an armband to Naruto first.

"Do you accept these terms?" She asked the short blond, to which he gave her a determined nod as she put the armlet on him, releasing his weights. Many people were stunned into silence at how much those anklets and bracers must have weighed.

"And you, Sir Conrad, do you accept?"

"Yes, I shall accept these terms! Nothing she stop me from vanquishing this foul little beast and liberating my one true love from his evil grasp!" Conrad shouted out to the crowd as the armband was affixed to his arm.

Conrad's declaration was met with wild cheers, but to those who either knew him better than that or was a good friend of Naruto's, it was a load of bullshit. Tsunade was a split second away from knocking the blond knight wannabe's head clean off when Jiraiya had her in an iron grip, shaking his head at her. "Let him do this on his own, Hime. Have some faith in the brat." He told her, getting her to calm down and sit back down. Hinata, Anko, and Sakura were beyond livid at how this bastard was debasing and degrading Naruto like that, hoping that he makes Conrad pay dearly for it. Melissa was clearly very worried since Conrad seemed so confident. She knew he had something up his sleeve, but just couldn't prove anything. Ila knew that Conrad was cheating and even told Naruto about it, but he insisted that he could handle it. She never stopped worrying for him and sent up a silent prayer for him to be safe.

Jenny finally raised her hands to have them get ready. "FIGHT!" She roared as she Shunshin'd back into the booth she was in.

Naruto fell into the basic sword stance that Genie taught him and readied himself for anything that Conrad might pull. Conrad, on the other hand, simply paced around in front of him woth a cocky smirk as he slowly brandished his sword, pointing it at Naruto like he did to the robbers. "Come here. I think you and I should dance together. Shall I lead?" He announced.

In a blur of motion, he lunged forward and nearly impaled Naruto's head, who just barely parried the blow into the wall belind him and cove out of the way. _'What the hell was that? There's no way he's that fast on his own...Something's wrong here. He didn't even flex his muscles when he moved and the way he's holding the sword is all wrong. Let's see about this...' _He thought as he lept in to engage Conrad to test out his theory, using a combo of light slashes and thrusts to probe Conrad's defenses, using his smaller size and speed to his advantage.

Like he was hoping, Conrad went on the defensive and revealed his secret. However, it was like facing Genie in a full out fight, and he wouldn't be able to last very long unless he did something quick. Finally, a swipe broke through his defenses and struck home, nearly cutting the small ninja in half to the horror of his friends and supporters. Suddenly, he transformed into a neatly sliced log and reappeared a few yards away to give himself some breathing room. '_It's like that sword has a mind of it's own...Wait! I've seen something like this before in one of Ila-neechan's books! That's a Dancing Sword! Those things will fight on their own, just dragging the user along for the ride like what's happening now! I think that gem in the hilt is like it's brain or something. If I can hit that, I can expose him as a fake! Here we go!' _The young shinobi thought as he put his plan into action.

Taking out a kunai and using it in his left hand while his right handled the sword, he quickly moved to lock Conrad into a stalemate. Acting quickly before he could be repelled, he jammed tha kunai into the gem, completely destroying it and rendering the enchanted blade powerless. The horrified expression on Conrad's face told him all he needed to know, that he and Genie were dead on in the fact that Conrad had no skill of his own, nor was he even a real knight. He simply let the sword do all the work and took the credit for himself.

"MY SWORD! DADDY AND MOMMY ARE GOING TO KILL ME!" The now fake knight screeched.

Taking advantage of his opponent's surprise, he quickly smacked the false knight across the face with the flat of his blade, knocking him to the ground. Without wasting any words, he made to drive his blade into his opponents heart, but thought better of it. _'If I kill this jerk, I'll only prove his rumors to be true. I'm better than this.'_ His thought as he hesitated.

Conrad regain a bit of his senses to throw out a snide comment. "Heh, has the demon lost his nerve? You pitiful coward..." He was cut of by Naruto's gaze hardening and a primal yell as he thrust his blade down...just a scant inch from Conrad's head.

"At least I didn't need a magic sword to do my fighting for me, Teme." Naruto growled as he dragged Conrad up with a strength no one thought he had. Next, he created a Kage Bunshin to hold Conrad in place while he charged up a Rasengan.

"Hey Teme, catch! _**RASENGAN!" **_Naruto roared as he shoved the mini-cyclone into Conrad's armored gut, ripping the suit of armor to shreds and launching his all the way to the opposite side of the arena, knockig him out cold as his head impacted the arena wall.

After the dust kicked up by his crash landing died down, the people of Ohfun and all of Conrad's supporters got a look at the REAL Conrad, he looked so skinny and scrawny that he could be knocked over by a decent gust of wind. Many of his now former fan girls were repulsed by this fraud in shining armor, who were putting two and two together. If he was lying to them about this, did he lie about the boy, too? Naruto could have killed him easily, but chose the higher path. Demons and monsters were supposed to revel in blood and death, but he chose to let Conrad live, humiliating and exposing him instead.

Jenny looked at the boy with barely contained pride as she announced him the victor of the duel.

"The winner...Naruto Uzumaki!" The head priestess declared to the audience as she and Carwess rose from their seats. She teleported down to the grounds and grabbed him into a hug. "I'm so glad you are safe and I'm so proud of you. I knew you could do it." She told him, her voice filled with pride, Carwess right behind her giving his own congratulations. Off to the side, Conrad was loaded on to a stretcher to be dragged away. Once he was up and able to get around, he was to be banished from ever setting foot on temple grounds ever again for how he cheated in a holy and sacred duel of honor.

"What? You can't do this to me! I'll tell my mommy and daddy on you people! You haven't seen the last of me!" He ranted as some of the guards dragged him away from the stadium in shame.

The Konoha group was proud of how he handled the duel and the insults, and stunned at the fact that he seemed to have changed since coming to this world, as if he matured greatly. Tsunade looked every part the proud mother as the powerful kunoichi gave off a a brilliant smile for her son in all but blood. Naruto's adventurer teammates and Ila were very proud of him. Genie saw this as a hallmark in his training, seeing as she would have had a hard time fending off that enchanted blade for very long. Merrill was happy that he used his head to fight Conrad, figuring out the secret behind the his fake skills and taking him down.

Melissa, however, was the most proud of them all. Despite all that she had done and said to hurt him, he still took up arms on her behalf. She knew as well as he did, that he could have lost on purpose to get even with her and be rid of her with one swift stroke, but her young champion came through for her and revealed her now thankfully former fiancee to be a sham. All that she had learned about him over their time together had changed her opinion of her Hero.

Finally, the Konoha group couldn't be held back any longer as they all lept from the stands down to the field right behind Naruto. As he and the two near parental figures in his new life turned to walk out of the stadium, they found that a new group of people had entered behind them.

Naruto's eyes opened in shock, as did the two adults beside him. "B-Baa-chan? Ero-Sennin?" He exclaimed before passing out from the shock.

_A/N: Chapter 8 over and done with. This one took me a while to write because I wanted to get it just right. I also wanted to have Conrad thoroughly humiliated and defeated by Naruto. Karma can be a real bitch, can't it? Also, Tsunade was understandably upset with Melissa. She sees Naruto as her baby and WILL lash out at anyone that hurts him out of cruelty. Also, this WILL be a harem pairing for Naruto, so if or when you review, tell me who you want in it. I WILL listen to your input should you care to share it._


	9. East meets West : A Tearful Reunion

_Hey y'all! I'm back with another installment of the Rune Ninja series! East meets West and Naruto is reunited with his fellow Konoha ninja once again, who have seen the changes that Naruto had gone through since arriving in the Rune Soldier world. The adults are the first to see him again due to beign in the right place at the right time. The younger ninja will get their chance soon._

_**MYLEE STADIUM - MEDICAL STATION**_

Down below the stadium in a medical aid station, Naruto was slowly coming back around, stirring on the small bed that he was laying down in. With a groan, the still diminuative blond yanked himself up by the boot straps and jumped out of bed, making his way towards the small table in the corner that held his armor and equipment. After re-equipping himself, he made his way towards the door when the door opened to reveal Lady Jenny and his friends to walk through the doorway.

"Naruto, you're awake! I'm so proud of you!" Ila said happily as she scooped him up in a hug.

"Yeah kiddo! You really showed that pompous asswipe who's boss!" Merrill added, ruffling his spiky blond locks.

"Really, boy. You held your own against something that would have given me trouble. You still have much room for improvment, but I'm very proud of the progress you've made under my teachings." Genie told him with a proud smile.

Jenny and carwess didn't say anything, but the looks of pride of their faces spoke volumes. Even Melissa looked like she was proud of him, honestly and genuinely.

Naruto never had this much praise back home in Konoha. It only solidified his desire to stay here in Ohfun, with his new surrogate family that he had come to love.

_'Wait...Konoha?'_ He thought as he was reminded of what he thought he saw before he passed out from exhaustion.

"Hey, um...Did you guys see a woman with long blonde hair and an old coot with really long white hair?" He asked them.

Jenny remembered back to when he passed out :

_**FLASHBACK**_

_Naruto's eye just rolled to the back of his head as he hit the deck, HARD. Jenny just sighed as she bent down to scrape him up, turning to the newcomers, recognizing them all from Naruto's memories._

_"You...couldn't be...Tsunade? Jiraiya?" She ventured to guess._

_Tsunade arched an eyebrow at how these people knew. "Yes, that we are but how did you know?" The blond woman replied with a question of her own._

_Jenny and Carwess told her of how Naruto appeared in their world and of the memory and seal walk she and Carwess performed when Naruto's life was saved. They also told of how they met the Kyuubi no Kitsune and learned about their world and it's customs._

_Jenny was still giving Sakura the evil eye due to all that she had seen in the boy's memories, but Tsunade filled her in on how Sakura took the news of Naruto's supposed demise. Jenny then found out from the tall blonde woman what Sakura had said over Naruto's casket, that she loved him, even knowing what he had within him. Merrill, Ila and Jenny eased up on her after hearing that._

_Their talks moved back on to the welfare and wellbeing of Naruto, the objective of Tsunade's little expedition into their world. They talked about how Naruto had immersed himself into the studies of the arcane arts as well as swordsmanship. Carwess was proudly telling them of how fast Naruto was learning his arts, making those who knew of Naruto previus academic attempts eyes go wide with surprize._

_Genie was telling of how quickly and naturally her young apprentice had taken to the sword arts. The vigor with which he had taken to learning all she knew made her wish once again that Naruto had been born into the Aleide Tribe, Genie's people. If he had, becoming the village cheif would not have been beyond him. In fact, he had all of the qualities that they looked for in a leader. To them, lineage was irrelevant. The worth of the person was in the person him or herself._

_The inevitable happened when Jiraiya's pervy tendencies reared it's ugly head upon seeing the ensembles of Ila, Merrill, and especially Genie. Luckly for said women, Tsunade had him on a leash, a very tight and painful leash as she introduced him to the stadium wall. Hinata and Sakura just sighed while Anko kicked the pervy old fart in the ribs a few times for good measure while Shikamaru just slapped his forehead._

_"This guy's a Sannin? Who'd he bribe to let that happen?" He muttered._

_Jenny and Carwess just shrugged, used to such displays from their time serving King Rijarl directly. "Just like I thought he'd be..." Jenny said aloud._

_"If anything, he's worse. I'd know from being his teammate from age 11 to now." Tsunade muttered, as she dragged the unconscious Sannin back to where they were._

_The group of Time/Space travelling ninja were offered lodgings with the Inn where Naruto stayed, who accepted them without a second thought. Their rooms and dining for the night were paid for by Merrill, who made a killing off of betting on Naruto to win. Pretty generous for a thief, eh?_

_**FLASHBACK END**_

"Hey, Jenny-Obasan? You alright?" She heard Naruto asked her in concern as she felt him shake her gently.

Jenny snapped to all of the sudden. "Oh, um, Naruto! Yes, yes I'm fine. As for your question, I didn't see anything of the sort." She answered. The others gave her an incredulous look but the look she gave in return just told them to go along with it.

Naruto looked downcast. "Oh. I guess I was just tired from the fight. That damn Dancing Sword of his was a real pain to fight, but the crooning ass was a piece of cake. Just goes to show what REAL training can do." Naruto replied, changing the subject.

"Too true, kid." Genie told him, ruffling his hair with a grin.

"Come on, kiddo! We're gonna go to our favorite tavern to celebrate! My treat!" Merrill cheered.

"Wait a minute...Do you bet on me, Merrill-neechan?" Naruto asked, eyes narrowing slightly.

"Well...I might have placed a _small_ wager, but since you won, it doesn't matter, right?" The thief replied innocently, making Naruto shake his head and chuckle.

"Oh well, I helped out another person, at least." He reasoned.

"That's the spirit, kiddo! My little lucky charm!" She replied cheerfully as she slipped an arm around his shoulder, leading him out of the room.

The remaining people inside had a question for the priestess. "Why didn't you tell him about them, Jenny? He deserves to know." Carwess asked of her.

"Yes. I'd like to hear the reasoning, as well." Genie added, her arms folded across her chest as she leaned against the doorframe.

Melissa and Denise didn't say anything, but they too, were curious.

"I want it to be a surprize for him, to be special. I would never hide something so important from him without a good reason." She explained.

They bought the explaination for now and they all proceeded to the tavern to join in the celebration.

_**TAVERN - FOX'S GLEN**_

The Konoha group had gotten themselves settled into their rooms, Tsunade and Anko to one, Hinata and Sakura to another, and then finally Jiraiya and Shikamaru in the last. However, Shikamaru had some misgivings about being roomed with the Great Pervert and the kind of calamity he could bring down on them, if Naruto's tales of his travels with Jiraiya were any sort of indication of the trouble the old perv could get into due to his...hobbies.

After a good soak in the local bathhouse, which was enclosed to the girl's relief and Jiraiya's lament, they all concregated at the tavern across the street from their Inn to await the arrival of the one they were longing to see once again. The kids had gone to get a feel for the town while the adults had a drink at the pub while they waited for Naruto to awaken.

"Ahhh, this ale's pretty good and the portions rock!" Anko breathed out after a good tug on her mug.

"Yep! I could get used to this place." Tsunade agreed.

"This place sucks." Jiraiya sulked.

"Of course it sucks for you. The bathhouse can't be peeked on by perverts like you." Tsunade teased, sticking her tongue at at him.

Tessa, one of the waitresses, recognized them from Naruto's stories and sat them down without wait.

"So, you know the little scamp?" Tsunade asked her with a grin.

"Yeah! All of the regulars here do! He works here part time and works off his tabs. What's more, with that Shadow Clone thing he has, he's like a one man work force! Our boss loves having him around and he's a joy to have here! I think he's such a little sweetheart!" The young waitress gushed.

Many of the regular patrons of the Fox's Glen raised their mugs in agreement.

"Aye. He's a right good lad, he is." One older man with a great bushy beard said.

"Brat's got spunk. I like that." Another man said, a fellow adventurer.

"He's a little sweetheart and a cutie, too. If he were only older..." A young woman in her 20's admitted with a sigh, her head propped up in her hands.

"Yeah, he's a good kid and a decent cook, too." Amy, the other waitress spoke out.

Tsunade and her group all smiled at how these people all had glowing opinions of Konoha's most un-loved son. It represented what Konoha could have had if they had just opened their damn eyes and saw Naruto for who he really is.

_'It almost seems cruel to bring him back now...He seems so accepted and admired here. There has to be another way...'_ Tsunade thought sadly.

The door to the tavern swung open to reveal the brunette young woman they met earlier. "Hey Merrill, Naruto." A few patrons greeted.

"Hey Gaki! Over here!" Anko shouted out above the bar, standing up.

Naruto's jaw dropped. " A-Anko-nee? I-Is it really you?" He asked in complete disbelief.

"As real as it gets, gaki!" She cheered as she rushed up to embrace him.

"I missed you, Otouto. I missed you so damn much..." She whispered into his ear as a few tears made their way down her face.

Naruto returned the embrace. "I thought nobody would even miss me..." He told her honestly.

"Stupid gaki...Of course we missed you. We wouldn't have come here if we didn't." Tsunade spoke up.

"Baa-chan?" Naruto exclaimed.

"Yep! C'mere brat!" The blond Sannin told him as she snatched him up. Naruto then remembered what Gamabunta told him about Tsunade.

"H-hey, Baa-chan? Is it true? That you wanted to adopt me?" He asked her, a hopeful tone in his voice.

Tsunade gave him the most radiant smile she could muster. "Yeah...I still do, if you want to take me up on that offer." She replied.

It didn't even take him all of three second to think about it. "Okay...Kaa-chan." He replied, calling her mom for the first time.

Tsunade, ever the rough and gruff woman, let her mask fall as tears streamed down her beautiful face.

"My sochi...my baby." She murmured as her grip on him tightened.

It was then that Jenny, Carwess, Genie, Ila, Denise and Melissa walked in. Genie was happy that the boy finally had a mother, but felt a twinge in her heart. She was toying with the idea of taking the boy in herself. Same with Jenny, as they both felt a maternal attachment to him. Denise herself was also happy for him, finally getting the parent he always wanted. Melissa knew of his past and couldn't suppress a sad smile at how Naruto was clinging to the tall blond woman, a tearful smile on his face.

_'How could I have ever called this boy a demon and a killer...I was so stupid. I have much to make up for, my Champion.'_ Melissa swore. Indeed, she did have much to atone for, but she vowed to do whatever it took to regain Naruto's trust and companionship. He had proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was entirely wrong about him and his people, now that she had met some of them. Back through whatever rabbit hole these people came from, was an entire world of these shinobi, including Naruto's home village, Konoha.

"When we get home, I'll fill out the paper work and then, you'll officially be my son." She told him with a smile.

"Welcome to the family, kiddo." Anko ruffled him hair playfully.

"What?" Was his intelligent question.

"After you brought the traitor back, the council let him off the hook with a slap on the hand and even tried to reward him for killing you by giving him a harem to repopulate his clan. Sakura, Ino, Hinata and her little sister were the ones he chose to breed with. I think he chose those girls just to spit on your memory, but he was denied by the Clan heads. The council then tried to get their way by demanding that every kunoichi from 13 to 25 register in the Uchiha Breeding Program. Anko was inside the age range and she was threatened with treason if she refused to carry the Uchiha brat's seed. I stepped in and adopted her since she was a orphan like you, granting her immunity from the program. She is now Anko Mitarashi Senju and you are now Naruto Uzumaki Senju. The Yamanaka clan took Sakura in and protected her from it, as were the other clan heiresses." Tsunade explained as Anko pulled her little brother, now legally, in close to her with a grin.

"They can just order you to bear someone's child like that?" Melissa asked, horrified at the thought.

"Sadly, if the council decides to do so to an active duty kunoichi, they can. However, since I never approved of it, they couldn't follow through with it. They need my approval to do this and it is generally frowned upon since it takes valuable kunoichi away from performing missions, weakening own fighting strength." Tsunade explained as she continued.

"Bottom line sochi, you were treated as a leper and a monster, but you never once complained and for than I am so proud of you. To tell you the truth, your success in apprehending the traitor has earned you a promotion to Chuunin. I even brought you the vest." She told him, pulling out a storage scroll and unsealing the Chuunin Flak Vest.

"Really?" He asked as he took the vest and put it on proudly.

"Yes. You've more than earned this." Tsunade answered.

"Chuunin? What's that?" Denise asked

Tsunade looked at the girl who spoke. _'So...This is the little girl that has a crush on my sochi. She's a real cutie.'_ She thought before answering the question.

"Chuunin is a rank within the ninja villages. We all start out as Academy student. Those who graduate get sorted into teams of three and a sensei. There, they have to pass their sensei's test and if they do, they become Genin. After they accumulate experience and successfully complete their missions, their sensei may nominate them for the Chuunin Exams." Tsunade explained.

The Alecrast crowd there knew what she was talking about, as Naruto explained that to them before.

"Ah yes. Naruto told us about that and how his went." Jenny suppiled.

"Er, right. Anyway, not that many make Chuunin off of the exam, anyway. It's mainly like a sales pitch to attract more missions from feudal lords and other leaders. Many earn their rank like Naruto did, through valor in the field. After Chuunin, there are a couple of paths to follow. One path is that of a Medic, like myself, Sakura and Hinata, and my assistant Shizune. Another is to join the Hunter Corps, who hunt down traitors and silence them before they sell us out to another, unfriendly power. They are also eligible to join the ANBU, our most elite shinobi who tackle the most difficult and dangerous missions. Naruto's sensei, Kakashi, was once an ANBU Captain, as well as Anko here. Then there are your basic Academy teachers, guards, administration, etc."

"That sounds very diverse." Ila commented, her tone conveying interest. Indeed, this system sounded very well organized. Tsunade could see the sharp wit underlying within this young woman and it interested her greatly.

_'Naruto chose his friends here well...'_

Genie had to agree with that assessment. It sounded like a military run state all on it's own, with the Kage acting as a soverign. On top of all that, the Kage's had to be statesmen as well as warriors when their people needed their strength and she could tell that Tsunade was no push over. She seemed to ooze power from her very presense, tighly controlled but ready at a moment's notice.

"Thank you. After Chuunin, some can specialize in different areas. These are called Special Jounin. Anko here is a Special Jounin whose specialty is interrogation, espionage, and assassination. From there, they will take an individual exam to become a Jounin once they gain the sponsership of a Jounin in good standing. Again, the option to join the ANBU is there. Also, a Jounin in good standing may take on a role as the sensei for a team of Genin, like Naruto's own team, Team 7. I myself, was on a team long ago when I was Naruto's age with this pervert here. The Third Hokage, Sarutobi-sensei, was our teacher and somewhat of a father figure for me. The relationship between Sensei and Student is one that is held sacred." The beautiful Hokage told them, winding down her explaination.

Carwess agreed wholeheartedly on that line of thinking. The trust between Teacher and Student is truly a sacred and valuable thing, something that he promotes among the teaching staff at the Magic Academy and within the Guild. Jenny also preached what Tsunade was saying. In her order, it was the way things were run. The Apprentice girls should be able to look up to the elder Priestesses and ask them anything without fear of rejection.

The group moved to a more suitable table, one able to seat them all as they threw a small party to celebrate Naruto's victory and promotion. Denise thought that the vest looked quite good on Naruto and let him know so. Melissa was getting a better look at what ninja were really like and saw that they were just as normal as one could be, execpt that they could pull off some truly amazing things and even the young ones had a noticable presense to them, an awareness that rivaled a war veteren.

Jenny was talking with Tsunade and found that she had more in common with the blond woman than she first thought. They had both lost precious loved ones to war in tragic ways, both were combat veterans and leaders of their own people, and they both loved the blond boy that had wormed his way into their hearts somehow. Genie was no execption, either. The ex-merc was battle-hardend and aloof, cast out from her tribe, the Aleide, over breaking a rule to save a life. She wandered for a long time, fighting in battle after battle as a mercenary until she met her two teammates and decided to go into the Adventurer business. She never once thought about settling down in one place for a long time. When she met Naruto and began to grow attached to him, she felt her long suppressed maternal instincts arise. Something about him called out to her and this time, she responded by taking him under her wing.

Jiraiya pulled his Godson over to him. "So kid...I hear that you've got your fair share of babes after you, am I right?" The old lecher asked slyly.

He got his answer with Naruto's blush. There were some VERY attractive girls after him, one wasn't even human but extremely beautiful. The ones that Jiraiya knew of were Ino, Sakura and Hinata. He was filled in on the other two by Genie on accident. He didn't know what the hell an Elf was, but if his pervert senses weren't failing him, she was a mega hottie.

"Geez, Ero-Sennin. You're just as bad as the fuzzball." Naruto groused.

"You TALK to the Kyuubi?" He asked.

"Yeah. Me and him have a kind of agreement. He loans me his chakra and he lives a little longer and gets to see all these pretty girls. He's just as big a pervert as you!" Naruto told him.

_**"Hey, kit. I'm not THAT bad."**_ The massive fox grumbled.

_"Oh yes, you are! You were trying to get me to sneak into the changing rooms at the Mylee Temple with my Sexy Jutsu just so you could 'take in the scenery'!"_ Naruto fired back.

"_**So what? Being locked in here as I am, I have to get my jollies somehow. Everywhere you go around this world, you end up attracting the attention of some real cuties! The Elf girl is just a case in point."**_ The Kyuubi reasoned with a pervy giggle, making Naruto sigh in defeat and disgust at the same time.

"Ah, you're no fun. Such a prude..." Jiraiya teased.

"Shut up, you pervy old fart!" Naruto fired back as Jiraiya pulled out an Icha Icha book, catching Carwess's attention.

"Is that..." He asked. He had seen the book through Naruto's memory and had wanted to see it for himself, strictly to sate his curiosity of course.

"Oh this? Heh...THIS is some quality reading, my friend!" Jiraiya crowed, not too loud as to alert Tsunade and the women. He then got Carwess introduced to the magic that was Icha Icha. Naruto just slapped his forehead in irritation.

"Aw man! Not you too, Carwess-sensei!" Naruto whined.

"Hey brat...If you wanna keep those girls of yours happy, you'd do well to read one of these! Thousands of readers swear by them!" Jiraiya chortled, his speech soundly oddly like a sales pitch.

"I wonder what Ba...I mean Kaa-chan would say if she saw you trying to get me to read one of those books?" Naruto thought aloud.

Jiraiya went through all colors of the rainbow before going pale. Now that he was her son, death would be wonderful compared to what Tsunade would do to him.

_**OHFUN CITY STREETS**_

Sakura, Hinata, and Shikamaru were wandering around the city, waiting for news about Naruto, but they were curious about this new world that Naruto had found himself in and had adapted to so they went to explore. They were taking in everything that was so different from their world, like the clothes, people's names, and that they were in a Kingdom, ruled by a king. They asked if a king was like a Daimyo, to which they go some weird stares until the supply store clerk recognized the spiral leaf symbol of their headbands as the same one Naruto wears.

"I recognize that symbol. You must know Naruto, then." The man, old man Bane, called out from the doorway to his weapon and armour shop. He was once an adventurer himself, as well as a soldier and war veteran until he retired and set up his shop. Upon meeting Naruto through Genie, he took a shine to the boy. He even gave him one of his kunai to make copies of, as well as some of his other equipment and gave him ideas for new designs to try in his forge.

"Yeah. We do. We were his classmates and Sakura was his teammate." Shikamaru replied lazily. He knew that the prople around here were used to seeing Naruto around, as if he had lived here his whole life, so he knew not to be suprized to be asked about him.

"It's really interesting to meet other ninja like Naruto. I thought that he would be the only one I'd see in my lifetime." Bane commented, rubbing his chin as he introduced himself.

"I'm Bane. I own this weapons and armour shop that Adventurers come to all the time for their supplies, including Naruto. He and his team are some of my best customers!" The old man beamed.

"Oh, so then Naruto-kun got his gear from you, then?" Sakura asked.

"Yep! I even made his little throwing knives after he let me copy one. He even told me of the way your people make swords as he'd seen a blacksmith working once when he was young, so he told me. To fold your weapon sharp many times to achieve great strength and durability. Although, the sword he uses was forged by his mentor, Genie. I swear, she thinks of him as her son with how she teaches and trains the boy." The old armorer mused.

Hinata walked over to where the kunai were on display and picked one up, getting a feel for the weapon. She then held up a piece of cloth and the weapon sliced through it like it wasn't even there, showing extreme sharpness. Next, she then threw it at a small target against a wall, where she could tell that others had done the same. The weapon flew from her hand with startling speed, burying nearly to the hilt.

"This is very impressive work! This feels so light, but I can tell that this is finely made." She commented, impressed. She know that Tenten would LOVE to meet this guy and ask him to forge weapons for her sometime.

"Ahh, thank you, young miss. I'm quite proud of my work and these kunai as they're called as a big hit among the theives and scouts here in Ohfun. I even have others from Ramliearth and beyond asking for some! I tried the same forging methods with other weapons and the quality skyrocketed!" He told them, a big grin on his face.

The young shinobi had to agree that he turned out some real quality work, better than most of the outfitters in Konoha.

_**ELSEWHERE...**_

In a hidden chamber beneath some old ruins just outside of Ohfun, a mass of indiviuals decked out in blood red robes with a large black cross on the back had gathered around a magical rune array, their faces hidden from view. One figure, kneeling down in the side of the one person standing on a dais.

"So, Ansel has been slain? Are you sure?" A deep, basso voice demanded to know from the person cowering next to him.

"Y-yes my lord. It is true." The person, in a shaky voice answered.

A uncomfortable silence reigned over the dark congregation as a chill ran through the cowering man. The man on the dais, the leader of this dark covenant, trembled with anger at the news. Ansel had been one of his best underlings and a favorite. He had the important mission of gathering the magical wood from the elves in the Tarsius Forest to aid in erecting a portal to another world that was rumored to contain arcane knowledge of great power. It was proven to exist when a young boy appeared in the Mylee Temple from a strange portal from a strange land that wasn't on any recorded map. He wielded a strange, yet terrifying power, one which did not rely on magical mediums of any sort or even an incantation. He was also reported to have said that there were others like himself where he was from.

"Who was this fool that killed Ansel?" The leader demanded.

"A-A boy...A student at the Academy where I teach...Naruto Uzumaki." The follower answered his master's question with fear firmly etched in his voice.

"This boy is beginning to become a thorn in our sides. He shall have to be dealt with soon. Although, that meddler Carwess will be a problem himself and he is watching out for the boy." The leader growled, causing murmurs to break out amongst the other members.

"I may...be able to lure him out, my lord." The timid man spoke out.

"Oh? Elaborate on this." The leader demanded.

"Y-you see, the boy has a deep rooted affection for another student at the Academy, a young woman named Ila Azaurel. He is rarely seen without her and I believe that if we take her from him, he will give himself up willingly." The weakling offered.

"Hmmm...This idea has merit. Very well. You have one month to kidnap this girl and lure Naruto Uzumaki to us. We will then, _convince_, him to lend us his demonic powers. Go now, and do not fail me, Foltess." The leader ordered, promising death should he fail.

_A/N: Cut and print! Naruto has had a tear-filled reunion with Tsunade who has now adopted Naruto to be her son like she wanted. The Konoha delegation is now interacting with the denizens of Alecrast and it looks like Jiraiya may find a new audience for his Icha Icha series! A fresh new crop of perverts, just waiting to come out! If he thinks this is all of teh girls that like Naruto, he's got a surprize waiting for him when he meets Celesia! The Konoha girls might be a little more than upset once they meet her, as well...CATFIGHT!_

_Anyway, it looks like the Akatsuki aren't the only ones interested in the Bijuu. This new organization, the Black Cross, is beginning to surface._


	10. An Odd Portent and Meeting Old Friends

_**Holy Hell! This chapter was nearly four months in the making, but I hope it was worth the wait! I had trouble with what to write AND I've been searching for employment, now that I have ended my decade long Active Duty Military career with an Honorable Discharge. The job market is a rough place!**_

_**Anyway, for those of you who forgot what happened in the last chapters...Read it again! It'll help, trust me.**_

_**KONOHA**_

In the Hokage's office, Kakashi sat at the desk, doing paperwork at a frantic pace as Shiuzune walked into the room, cheerfully carrying ANOTHER stack of paperwork that was even bigger than the one he just finished. He couldn't even speak, only whine pitifully as he eyed his Icha Icha book sadly.

"Now, isn't this fun?" The bob haired brunette asked, her tone a little TOO perky for his liking. She was actually doing this on purpose because he oringinally neglected the paperwork to just sit there and read his smut book all day. However, if Shizune could handle a slacker like her master, handling Kakashi was a piece of cake. She had him firmly under heel with a not a threat, but a promise that she would destroy his Icha Icha collection.

"Man...Naruto actually wants this job. More power to him..." He grumbled.

"Naruto-chan would make a fine Hokage someday. He knows what this job entails, but he doesn't care. Ahhh...such a nice boy." Shizune sighed with a smile as she let the stack plop down on the desk, making the infamous Copy-nin deflate even more, but he perked up with the mention of his wayward student.

"Naruto...How would he handle this?" He pondered. He thought back to the many missions where he divided multiple tasks among his clones... CLONES!

_**"KAGE BUNSHIN!"**_

Five Shadow Clones now surrounded the desk.

"Ah, thank you for joining me here. If you would be so kind as to help me with this paperwork, we can have Icha Icha theatre tonight." He informed his clones, getting murumurs of approval from them as they divided the tasks and got to work.

Shizune simply sighed. _'It's a good thing Lady Tsunade hasn't figured that out yet, or she'd be smashed all day. I'm not even sure how she handles all that booze.'_

_**ELSEWHERE IN THE ELEMENTAL COUNTRIES...**_

Danzou, his few surviving Ne Operatives, and Orochimaru's entourage were travelling down near around Earth Country, trying to make it to another of The Snake Sannin's hidden bases. Their manpower was dwindling badly, as the Akatsuki remnants were hot on their heels following the complete and utter destruction of Rice Field Country. The main Sound base there was nothing but the world's biggest pothole, just as promised from the Mad Bomber of Iwa, with a puppet avalanche from the greatest puppetmaster Suna ever produced mopping up the rest. Orochimaru had some advanced warning and managed to get his future vessel and key minions out of there before the sky literally fell.

"Hey...What the hell are you waiting for, fool? Give me power." Sasuke demanded of the snake, rousing Kabuto's ire quite easily.

"Show Lord Orochimaru some respect, you little punk!" He snarled.

"Feh...If I wanted to hear the rantings of a pathetic lapdog, I would have asked you to speak." Sasuke countered. Before Kabuto could lunge in and knock the arrogance out of him, Danzou stepped in.

"Uchiha-sama, it would be wise to hold off on such training until we reach the safety of Orochimaru's base." He advised. He had NO intention of being caught out in the open like this, not with not only the Akatsuki openly hunting them, but the remaining Jinchuuriki and Konoha Oi-nin on their trail. They wouldn't make it more than a day's travel if they began to waste large amounts of chakra like that without getting ambushed and demolished. This arrogant boy was quickly grating on his nerves. He was half tempted to let Kabuto knock the crap out of the brat and watch with a smug grin.

Sasuke relented with a scoff and sulked on forward. Even Orochimaru was growing weary of the boy's attitude and couldn't wait until he possessed his body so that he wouldn't have to listen to his whining any longer than he had to.

_'Honestly, he's even worse than I was.'_ The serpentine Sannin groused as they continued along their way to the Earth Country base.

He wasn't the only one grousing. Sasuke remembered what his brother told him he had to do in order to gain the Mangekyo Sharingan, kill his best friend in cold blood. He knew that Naruto was still alive somehow, but wouldn't admit it to anyone. He wanted to find Naruto first and kill him personally. Then, he wanted to return to Konoha and make them all grovel at his feet, making them give him whatever his heart desired, which ceased when Tsunade took over and started to weed out the council.

_'That big chested whore is one of the first on my list, right after that Dobe and Hatake. Then, those three sluts will be mine to do as I please with...And I'll make the dobe watch right before I kill him so that the last things he sees is me violating his so-called precious people. With this snake's power, I'll kill EVERYONE that ever slighted me!'_ He mentally raged.

He had only further slipped into madness during these past several months. One such indicator was when they stopped for some lunch in a small rural village back in Water Country. The waitress walked up to take their order, but asked Kabuto for his order first. Sasuke felt that she was disrespecting him and lunged at her. Luckily, one of Danzou's Ne caught him and pinned him down, knocking him out with a sedative. He nearly comprimised their cover.

"I never thought I'd say this, but are we there yet?" Kabuto grumbled as he trudged on, many of the Ne and remaining Oto shinobi muttering in agreement.

_**BACK IN ALECRAST, MAGIC ACADEMY...**_

Foltess was treading around lightly as he stowed away his black cloak within his office. More than once, he was grateful that he had so much tenure within the Guild that not many would, or even could question his whereabouts. The only one that kept tabs on them was Carwess, but even then he was only one magician. Even he couldn't see everything and watch everyone. He knew that Carwess knew about the Black Cross, as well as the rest of the faculty, and Foltess took great pains to hide his own affiliation with them. The Black Cross has some very, VERY high profile members within it, some that were in the inner most royal circles.

Getting back into his Guild robes, his mind was feverishly trying to concoct a plan to deliver what he had promised his master, Naruto's mysterious powers. He had seen some of the blond boy's abilities and had to admit that they were rather impressive in combat. Just the Cloning Technique alone was invaluable, however, the power source needed to use these _'Jutsu'_ as they were called was beyond him. He would need Naruto himself or someone like him to unlock it, if he had it at all. Once he found out how to do it, he would then inform his master within the order. With a new power source that needed no magical medium or artifact, they could easily overwhelm the throne and take over the kingdom.

That, however, was contingent on finding others like Naruto, the eight remaining Jinchuuriki, and persuadeing them over to their cause, and maybe this Akatsuki, as well. If not, then simply take what they want and cast away the husks. They were sure they could devise a way to extract the demons with some of the seal blueprints that Carwess had made of the seal that the boy bore. Once again, all of this was contingent on if they could get their portal working. Ansel's failure and death in the Tarsius Forest really set them back on that front.

The traitorous teacher stepped out of his office and was about to lock the door when a voice spoke out from behind.

"So Foltess...What have you been up to these past few days, hmm?" The voice asked. He knew better than most that this was none other than Carwess, one of the Order's single greatest threats. He had to think fast. He was no match for Carwess with magic or in a fight.

"I was...just getting back from searching for more materials for potion making." He told the master magician quickly, spinning around to see that he wasn't alone. He had two others with him that he'd never seen before. One was a tall man around their age with a long mane of wild white hair and a large scroll across his back. The other was a woman with long blond hair ties into twin ponytails who looked to be in her mid to late twenties.

"Just WHO are they, Lord Carwess?" Foltess asked.

"These are my personal guests. They hail from the same village as young Uzumaki and they have come to retrieve him. The tall man on my right is Jiraiya, a Seal master and Naruto's teacher in the shinobi arts before he came to us. To my left is Tsunade, the leader of Naruto's people and his adoptive mother. They wanted to see just where he had been studying all this time and to meet some of the instructors he had studied under." Carwess told the timid man, walking away from him with his guests in tow.

"He was trying to hide something. I could tell." Tsunade spoke out quietly.

"I agree with Hime. He was nervious and avioding eye contact. Classic signs of dishonesty." Jiraiya seconded.

Carwess had no reason to doubt their hunches. Jiraiya was a Spymaster as well, and with Tsunade being a Medical Specialist, rooting out liars was child's play.

"I try to keep tabs on what goes on here within my guild, but alas...I am but one man, one tired old man and I have no solid proof. I fear that many of my efforts to keep the powers and wonders of magic within these halls from being misused are being circumvented by a few of my own staff." Carwesss sighed. At that moment, he was a true spitting image of their sensei, Sarutobi.

Tsunade could attest to needing eyes in the back of her head to watch for treachery from her own council and Jiraiya was no stranger to liars and traitors. Within their eyes, he saw a sad understanding and just left it at that as they carried on with their tour.

Foltess was left panic stricken due to his fear that the two shinobi saw right through him, but was wringing his hands at the thought of obtaining all that this Jiraiya knew about the sealing arts. He was introduced as a master of the sealing arts, a Sage. Someone who would be a boon to their cause if he helped them willingly or not. All he had to do was figure out a weakness to exploit.

_'It seems that the master will be getting to hear quite a few interesting things when next we meet.'_ The conniving coward schemed as he left to scout out his primary target, Ila.

_**OHFUN CITY STREETS**_

Anko, Genie, Naruto, Ila, and Merrill had left the tavern, bound for the Mylee Temple because he wanted to show Anko where he crash landed and Anko kind of wanted to see this place. Jenny had mentioned that there were a few priestesses in need of a wake up call, something Anko LOVED to give people. Jenny, Denise, and Melissa had to return to the temple early to take care of some business while Tsunade and Jiraiya really wanted to see the Magician's guild, so Carwess offered them a personal tour.

Along the way, the three members of the Konoha 11 that came on the expedition had finally run into Naruto on the way to the temple.

"N-Naruto? NARUTO!" Sakura exclaimed as she raced up to him and embraced him tightly.

"Naruto-kun...It's really you!" Hinata added as she too bum rushed him.

Shikamaru held back, but gave a lazy grin. "Damn...You sure as hell got yourself lost, eh?"

Naruto was dumb struck by the show of emotion from not only his teammate, but from the painfully shy Hinata, but Gamabunta's words came back to him, about how these two girls and Ino had feelings for him.

"H-hey guys...What's up?" He asked awkwardly.

"Honestly! We all thought you were dead, you baka! And all you can say when we meet you again is _'What's up'_?" Sakura yelled at him and he cringed, waiting for the blow to come but instead, she clenched harder.

"I really missed you, dammit." The pinkette told him gently.

"We really missed you...Naruto-kun. We've come all this way...to bring you back home where you belong, with us." Hinata added.

"Well...I guess that since you're alive, all members of the Uchiha retrieval squad are accounted for and alive. Good to see you, man." Shikamaru cut in, his hand on Naruto's shoulder.

Merrill and Ila were ready for Sakura to clock him and jump in, but Anko had them wait.

"Things have changed. Loss and regret can really change people, sometimes for the better. I doubt anyone else had as much regret as those two girls there." Anko told them.

Merrill and Ila backed down as they watched the scene a little longer. They were happy that Naruto had finally reunited with his loved ones from back home, that they now knew that he was alive and well. However, a painful twinge made itself known to them. Now that they had found him, he would most likely be returning home with them and their paths would never cross again. They didn't want Naruto to go. He had become family to them. Merrill saw much of herself in him, a natural scrapper and born survivor. Ila found the baby brother she had always longed for in him. Both young women loved him dearly and would gladly follow him to Konoha, wherever it might be. He brought some added meaning to their lives.

Unknown to them, someone else was watching them from an alleyway, his gaze taking note of the levels of familiarity that they were displaying.

_'So...The Uzumaki brat has more weaknesses, does he? Good. All the more to exploit.'_ Foltess thought until he saw one of them look in his direction and vanish. He tried to run away, but before he could even breathe, he felt something slithering around his neck. Looking down, he saw a vemonous Viper and screamed like a 3 year old girl.

"Now what do we have here, hmm? You know, I REALLY don't like eavesdroppers, especially when my precious otouto is imvolved. Now, what the hell are you doing here, maggot?" Anko pressed on him for information.

The scream attracted the attention of the rest of the group, who came running to see Anko in full business mode on a older man in his late forties.

"Anko-sensei...What are you doing?" Sakura sighed. She knew of a few of Anko's more paranoid habits.

"Master Foltess? What are you doing here?" Ila asked, bewildered as to what he would be doing skulking about in the poorer sections of the city. He had a really high opinion of himself and that led to many confrontations both in and outside of the Guild.

He had to find a viable answer and fast. "Oh well, uh...I was...just...looking for an apothicary!" The mousy sorcerer said quickly.

"An apothicary? Why would you be looking for one out here when the one in the Guild is one of the best stocked aorund?" Ila questioned, growing more and more suspicious by the second.

"I don't have to answer to the likes of _you_, Miss Azaurel, and certainly not to these foregin riff raff or that...barbarian." He sniffed haughtily.

"Why you little..." Anko growled until Naruto held her back.

"Attacking him would be a bad idea, Nee-chan." Naruto answered.

"W-Why?" She asked, bewildered.

"He's one of the headmasters of the Guild and attacking him would bring trouble down on all of us should he, and I know he would, go squealing to the authorities. It's best this way." Ila explained to Anko, not very happy with their options, either.

Genie agreed with her. "He's more trouble than he's worth. Just let him be and ignore him."

"People like him are a real pain in the ass." Shikamaru said with a grumble.

"Hmph. At least you know your place. I shall overlook this incident as these..._people_ are Lord Carwess's guests, but mark me, I WILL have you all thrown out on your ears should this happen again. Now leave my sight." He sneered as he spun on his heel and strutted off.

_'That Anko woman...I didn't even see her move and she was behind me! She could have KILLED me without me even knowing she was there! So THIS is what an experienced ninja is like...truly frightening and Ansel was taken down by a mere rookie. We need to exercise extreme caution.'_ Foltess thought as he quickened his pace.

"Forget him...he ain't worth it, Anko-nee, Sakura-chan." Naruto repeated, keeping them from launching him clear to Ramliearth via Left Hook Airlines.

The girls relented as they carried onward to the Mylee Temple.

_**MYLEE TEMPLE**_

The group finally made it to the Temple after a few more minutes of walking through the streets, the girls wanting to see the city from the ground instead of the rooftops. Naruto and Anko could have used the Shunshin to get them there faster, but again they wanted to see the city and be able to act like tourists for once. A drunkard came on to Anko while walking through the downtown district, but before Naruto could even blink, she handled him easily, mainly by letting her little _pets_ convice him that hitting on her was a bad idea.

"Wish I could do that..." Merrill grumbled as they carried on.

"You can really handle these jokers." Genie joked with the Snake Mistress.

"Yep. A girl needs to know how to handle losers like them." Anko replied with a grin, the two younger kunoichi taking notes.

_'Dad was right...women are troublesome...'_ He thought as a certain Suna kunoichi came to mind. Temari woud have chopped this guys arms off.

Further along the way, a pickpocket tried to pilfer Hinata's pockets. He saw her eyes and thought that she was blind, but she had a palm strike waiting for him, more like over a dozen that made his legs shut down.

"I'm NOT blind, you know. The next time you do that..." She said, activating her Byakugan for effect. The bulging veins that surrounded the eyes of this young girl was highly unsettling.

"I'll do more than just shut down your legs." She promised with her eyes narrowing as the group walked off, Naruto in complete awe over how she handled the situation.

"Very good, Hina-chan! Maybe you'd like to work in the interrogation rooms sometime with Ibiki and me." Anko complimented.

"Ano...I'd rather be a medic, but thanks for the offer, Anko-sensei." Hinata politely refused.

"Eh...Can't win 'em all." Anko shrugged.

Merrill and Genie DEFINATELY liked these women and how they handled themselves. They took no crap from anyone if they didn't have to and that was something that they highly respected.

Naruto walked up to the guards at the door and one of them was a close friend of his, Nina. She almost instantly recognized the symbol on the headbands that the three kunoichi wore and greeted them.

"Wow...I never thought I'd get to meet other ninja like Naruto here, much less female ones, now what were you called again...kunoichi! That's it!" Nina greeted.

"Yep. First, we have my teammate, Sakura Haruno. Next, we have two of my classmates, Shikamaru Nara and Hinata Hyuuga. Finally, my Onee-chan, Anko Mitarashi." Naruto introduced them all.

"Oi, gaki...You're forgetting something." Anko reminded.

"Oh yeah, we're not Uzumaki and Mitarashi anyone since Kaa-chan adopted us! We're Naruto Uzumaki-Senju and Anko Mitarashi-Senju!" Naruto corrected happily.

"Well, hello there!" Nina chirped introducing herself as a regular guard at the Temple, which reminded Anko of the _"Eternal Chuunin"_ pair back home in Konoha, and she waved them inside afterward.

"Oh, by the way, Lady Jenny is in her office if you came to see her!" Nina called out from her post.

"Thanks, Nina-chan!" Naruto answered as they all proceeded inside.

Once inside, Shikamaru quickly noticed that he and Naruto were likely the ONLY males within the temple and questioned it.

"Duh...I told you that this is an all female schtick, Shika." Naruto retorted to his whining.

"Man...Good thing Jiraiya-sama's not here...He'd get us kicked out in no time flat." The lazy Nara commented, to which Naruto shuddered.

"Damn...I hope he NEVER comes here. EVER." Naruto replied.

As they continued on, they ran into several priestesses that held the short blond in much affection, making Sakura and Hinata grow slightly jealous at the attention he seemed to receive from these older and very attractive ladies, but Anko saw what they were into. He was mainly like a small fox kit that they couldn't help fawning over, not a romantic interest for them, as she reminded them. However, a few of the younger apprentices that were around their own age were beginning to show interest and that was where they drew the line. They quickly linked arms with him as they continued down the halls, much to the amusement of the women in the party and a few passing priestesses.

_'If only they knew that Denise is REALLY hot for him, or about that Elf girl, Celesia...This is gonna be fun to watch!' _Merrill thought while stifling a laugh, Genie and Ila thinking along those same lines.

"That is sooo cute! Little Naruto has a girlfriend or two!" One priestess with fairly long auburn hair named Katie gushed.

"Aww! Those girls are so lucky..." Another young woman, with bob cut ginger hair named Alyssa added, to Naruto's growing embarrassment.

Shikamaru just sniggered at Naruto's situation, but his mirth was cut short when a young apprentice walked up to him shyly.

_'Aw man...'_ He groaned inwardly.

"H-Hi...My name is Clarisse...What's yours?" She asked him with a blush.

Shikamaru just sported a dear-in-the-headlights _**(No pun intended...)**_ look, until Sakura nudged him with her elbow.

_"Just tell her your name! Come on, be nice!"_ She whispered as she gave him a light shove.

As the two introduced themselves, Hinata remembered something.

"Hey, Sakura-san?" She asked.

"Yeah?"

"Doesn't Temari-san from Suna like him, too?"

"Yeah...She does, doesn't she? But, she needs to stake her claim before this girl does!" The pink haired girl chimed with a grin.

"C'mon, pineapple boy...Let's go. You can flirt with your girlfriend later." Anko chortled as she grabbed his top knot and dragged him away.

"Dad was right...Girls are nothing but trouble." Shikamaru grumbled with a deadpan look on his face combined with a slight blush while being dragged away.

As they moved along, they ran into a small group, rather a trio of priestesses that ridiculed Naruto on a daily basis, one of which being a certain haughty blond priestess named Isabelle.

"Well, well...If it isn't Melissa's vertically challenged champion. Quite the lucky win, little boy. I'd like to see if you could beat MY Champion in a FAIR fight, none of your silly tricks allowed." The blond young woman laughed, but noticed his small group.

"Oh? What's this that we have HERE? MORE barbarians from whatever little hamlet that spawned this little urchin? Looks like one of you couldn't even afford proper clothing. Are you really that desperate to attract a man's attention, dearie?" Isabelle taunted.

The party burned with indignation, Anko especially but the Snake Kunoichi had a devious idea. She quickly vanished from view and then reappeared behind the laughing young women holding a pair of kunai in a reverse grip and her infamous sadistic grin. They wondered what she was up to, but that became very, VERY clear a moment later as their clothes just...fell apart like they had been sliced to ribbons. Naruto looked away in time but Shikamaru couldn't help but gawk at the now scantily clad girls in some very risque undergarments.

"I think I just hit puberty..." He muttered, blushing up a storm as the girls forced him to avert his eyes, although they felt a little vidicated by Anko's actions.

The Alecrast women were busting a seam laughing at the sight. It seemed as though Anko may have been where Naruto's prankster spirit came from, or at least she helped encourage it.

"I'm sorry, but what was that about indecent clothing? I guess I know how you got YOUR champion with lingere like THAT." Anko quipped in return. Jenny had explained how the order worked and if she woud be willing to serve a wake up call to some of her more...obstinate acolytes, something Anko LOVED to do considering the fact that she had all of the subtlety of a kick in the balls or a crazy man shouting profanities at the top of his lungs in a silent church.

"Ahhh...I feel better!" Anko stated loudly as she stretched out.

"C'mon, gaki! Time's a wastin'!" She belted out, dragging her chibi-blond behind her as her victims ran screaming down the hall, one of them tripping over herself.

Finally, they came to Jenny's office and walked right in.

"Jenny-obasan! I brought my friends to see the temple!" Naruto announced.

Sakura's first instinct was to belt Naruto over the skull for his blatant disrespect for an important figure, but thought better of it after she saw how the older woman's sea-green eyes lit up when he addressed her as he did.

"Naruto! Good of you to come and to bring your friends...where is Tsunade?" She asked, really wanting to talk with her leader to leader and woman to woman.

"Oh...Carwess-sensei took her to see the Guild." Naruto replied.

"Where's Jiraiya?" She asked, almost worried.

Her tone didn't go unnoticed by the Konoha crowd. "Ero-Sennin went with them." Naruto answered to her relief.

A temple filled to the brim with young maidens was too much of a temptation for a pervert of Jiraiya's caliber, not that they would even be able to catch him since he's also a master shinobi, but that's what made it worse, the fact that he could peep with impunity.

Jenny proceeded to take the Konoha-nin on a personally guided tour of her order's temple, showing them the exact place where Naruto crossed over into their world and entered her life. There just so happened to be a Ritual of Revealing in progress, so Naruto and Shikamaru had to wait outside for decency's sake, but the girls were allowed to watch it take place.

"It's so strange...I can feel SOMETHING in the air here." Anko commented.

"Whatever it is, it's making my Byakugan hazy..." Hinata added, her eyes not really able to pick up what it was.

"That is the presence of our deity...Mylee. He is in this hall right now...listen, and you can hear him." Jenny told them.

Sure enough, the girls could hear something in the back of their minds...

_**"YOUR CHOSEN CHAMPION, DEVOTED PRIESTESS, SHALL BE ONE OF COMMON BIRTH. HIS SPIRIT WILL BE HOW YOU WILL FIND HIM. GO FORTH, YOUNG PRIESTESS. LET YOUR FAITH AND COURAGE BE YOUR GUIDE."**_ The etherial voice rang in their minds, but it seemed to pause.

_**"I FEEL THE PRESENCE OF A HERO NEARBY...THE YOUNG HOLDER OF THE FOX DEMON...BRING HIM BEFORE ME. I WISH TO SPEAK WITH HIM."**_ The voice that the Konoha crowd presumed to be Mylee Himself.

Jenny's eyes went wide. This had NEVER happened before...A hero being called before Mylee...not even to the one they all thought was the greatest, King Rijarl.

"Quickly! Bring Naruto inside!" Jenny ordered quickly.

"But...Lady Jenny! No males are allowed in here!" One of the other senior argued.

"Mylee asked for him personally! This has NEVER happened before! Let him in!" Jenny repeated as Janice quickly put on her robes, pouting slightly.

"Melissa is so lucky..." She muttered.

Naruto was asked to enter, but Shikamaru was asked to remain outside.

"What's up, Oba-san?" Naruto asked his surrogate Aunt. She was about to answer him, but was beat to it.

_**"YOUNG NARUTO...IN JUST THE SHORT TIME YOU HAVE BEEN IN OUR WORLD AND YOU HAVE COME SO FAR FROM WHEN YOU CAME TO US. YOU HAVE DONE SO MUCH. ELVES WOULD NEVER DEIGN TO ASSOCIATE WITH HUMANS, BUT YOU HAVE PROVEN TO THEM THAT THERE IS SOME GOOD IN HUMANS AND THEY ACCEPT YOU AS THEIR SAVIOR. YOU STOOD TALL FOR YOUR PRIESTESS WHEN ANYONE ELSE WOULD HAVE ABANDONED HER. YOU OVERCAME ALL ODDS AND EXPOSED YOUR OPPONENT AS A FRAUD. YOU LIFE HAS FORGED YOU INTO A HERO THAT I CAN BE PROUD OF, BUT YOUR WORK IS FAR FROM OVER. I FEAR THERE IS DARKNESS ON THE HORIZON. THOSE WHO WOULD SEEK TO MISUSE THE AWESOME POWER WITHIN YOU ARE ON THE MOVE, BUT AN UNLIKELY ALLY WILL AID YOU. GUARD WELL YOUR LOVED ONES, YOUNG HERO...GUARD THEM WELL..."**_ The etherial voice warned as it faded.

The group was floored by the portent that the deity spoke of, but Anko knew of one such group that wanted the demons, but the last that she heard was that they had disbanded since they believed that Naruto was dead and took the Kyuubi to the grave with him. They may have found out that he was still alive, the information may have been leaked.

"The Akatsuki..." Anko breathed out, confusing the two younger kunoichi.

"What are they?" Sakura asked.

"All that we know is that they are an organization of S-Rank Missing-nin that want the Bijuu for some reason, but their final objective once they collect them is still a mystery, as well as almost all of their members. My old sensei, Orochimaru, used to be a member and so is that Uchiha brat's older brother, Itachi. They are all extremely powerful and dangerous, but we have no idea what they are capable of. From what Jiraiya-sama told me, Naruto has had to deal with Itachi and his partner, Kisame Hoshigaki, before. It was when they left to find Tsunade-sama that they tried to capture Naruto, but Jiraiya-sama drove them away." Anko explained to them.

"That's right. They attacked me and Ero-sennin when we left Konoha to look for Tsunade-kaachan. That idiot Sasuke thought he could take Itachi down, but Itachi took him apart with one hit. The Teme was already slipping, but that pushed him over the edge...I think." Naruto added.

This was the first that Jenny, Merrill, or Ila had heard of the Akatsuki, but from what they were described as, they were indeed fearsome. However, Jenny had heard of a group like them before from Carwess.

"The Black Cross...This sounds like something they would be after." Jenny told them, her tone grave.

"Who are they supposed to be?" Anko asked.

"They are a group of sorcerers that are dedicated to the darkest magicks. They covet power above all else, yet their members are shrouded in mystery. However, I hear rumors that there maybe a few members inside of the magician's guild." Jenny informed them.

They knew Jenny was powerful in her own right, as well as Carwess. In this world, they were the equivalent of a Kage. However, this Black Cross was enough to spook her and that told them that they were not to be taken lightly. This fact, coupled with the unknown magic that they wield and were supposedly masters of, made them very, very dangerous.

"There's some in the Guild?" Ila exclaimed.

"Yes. Informants have told us that there are certain members of the Guild that are supplying them with information, supplies, and texts. We have a few suspects, but no solid evidence to go on." Jenny confirmed.

"Just tell me something...Would Foltess be one of them?" Naruto asked.

"...Yes. He is one of our prime suspects and has been under watch for a while now for some of his questionable methods and experiments, but his seniority within the Guild and the support he's gained from certain nobles keep us from digging too deep into his affairs." Jenny answered.

"I thought that little shit was suspicious. You want me to beat some info outta him? It is my job, y'know." Anko offered.

"As tempting as that sounds, we cannot act without irrefutable proof of any wrongdoing on his part." Jenny politely refused.

"You forget what we shinobi are good at. We are spies first and foremost. Gathering information by hook or crook is our specialty." Shikamaru explained with a smirk.

"Yeah! A thief like me is always up for a good spy job and since Naruto here taught me some tricks like your Henge and Bunshin, I can help out if you want! I'll even give you a discount!" Merrill added in. Genie had to agree with that. When it came to gathering info, there were very few better at it than her and she was the best Ohfun had to offer, especially now that she had some shinobi training.

"Really? The gaki here taught you some stuff? I'll have to check you guys out and maybe give you guys some higher level material once I see where you stand." Anko grinned.

Merrill and Genie were grinning at the aspect of getting further in depth into some shinobi training from an acutal Kunoichi that has years of field experience. Naruto was a good teacher, but he was relatively inexperienced and lacked the ability to take their training further. Genie was already sold, since one of the techiniques she was taught saved her life.

The meeting wound down as Jenny said that she would talk over the offer with Carwess, since the Guild was his responsibilty and she wouldn't want to step on his toes or any investigation he might have going.

"I must discuss this with Carwess, but I think for now, we should all exercise caution in how we go about investigating their actions. As far as magicians go, they are very powerful and skilled. On the way out, could you send Melissa in here? I need to fill her in on what is going on." Jenny told them, ending the meeting.

The mixed group left her office only to run into Denise and Melissa, who were going about their daily duties around the temple.

"Oh...Hello. What brings you all to the temple?" Melissa asked.

Many of them still soured at her, but Hinata spoke up.

"Naruto-kun was just showing them around the temple while he visited Lady Jenny." She answered.

"Oh...That's good, because she wanted to see him about something." Melissa replied.

"Wait a moment...Lady Jenny said she had somethiung to tell you, Miss Melissa." Sakura piped up.

"Really? About what?" She asked.

"You'll...find out. Go on in." Naruto told her simply as he turned his back to her.

_'I think he's still angry with me...Not that I blame him.'_ Melissa thought sullenly as she walked into the office while Denise walked up to Naruto.

"Hey there, Naruto. You fought really well down there and showed that phony Conrad what a REAL warrior could do." She told him flirtingly keeping the corner of her eye on the two girls reactions. Sure enough, their combined glare was enough to curdle diary and she tried to press it a little farther by hugging him.

"I hope that you're feeling alright. You seem a bit angry...Are you still upset with Melissa?" She asked, looking him in the eye.

Naruto sighed heavily.

"Yeah...I'll forgive her eventually, but I don't know if I can ever trust her again." He replied to her.

She kissed him on the cheek before pulling away.

"You will...It's who you are and I wouldn't have it any other way." She told him with a wide smile that made him blush.

The women were all watching this play out and had to hold themselves back from laughing out loud at how the two young kunoichi were fuming mad.

"Hey! We've known him longer and I liked him ever since we were little!" Hinata shouted.

"I was his first crush! Hands off!" Sakura added.

"Oh yeah? I tended to him when he arrived here and I was his first friend here, not to mention I think it's about time I told him how I felt! I really like him! I've liked him from the moment I first saw him...more than I can say for either of you!" Denise retorted, making them flinch.

"Look...I know we royally screwed up, me with pining after that asshole Sasuke and Hinata being as spineless as a jellyfish...But you're not being fair to us!" Sakura shot back.

"How am I not being fair? It took believing that he was dead for both of you to admit anything!" Denise yelled back at them, again making them recoil.

The two sides looked ready to rumble until Naruto spoke out.

"STOP! I like you all...I really do and I won't just let you tear each other apart! You guys need to sort this out WITHOUT fighting!" Naruto admonished with a commanding voice.

The girls looked down, looking sheepish and ashamed of their conduct, especially Denise due to the fact that she was a member of the Mylee order. Genie just smirked at how her protege handled the situation, like a leader. Ila, Anko, and Merrill were smiling, seeing this as their baby brother growing into his role as a Hero that much more.

"We're...sorry, Naruto-kun. We shouldn't have fought like that, especially not here. I hope you can forgive us..." Hinata apologized.

"It's...okay. Just please don't fight of me anymore, not like you and Ino did over Sasuke." Naruto said, visibly grimacing when he used the traitor's name.

"Kid's got himself a harem on his hands with these three girls. They'll keep him busy, alright..." Anko sniggered.

"There's still one more..." Genie added with a sly grin, Merrill matching it.

"Oh yeah, that Elf girl. What was her name again...Celecia! That was her name." Merrill blurted out, but luckily without catching the attention of the three girls.

"Who's she?" Anko asked. That prompted Genie to explain their expedition into the Tarsius Forest and how a certain elven maiden became quite taken with him.

"Oh ho...Leave it to him to pull off something like that." Anko chuckled, but Genie could tell that she was withholding something from the kids for her own entertainment.

"Is there something else that you're not telling us?" Genie asked.

"You're pretty sharp. Yeah...We don't want the Gaki to know this yet, but because of who his real father and mother were, he's eligible for what we call the CRA, Clan Restoration Act. This was made to enable the last heir of a vital clan within the village to take multiple wives should they choose, but the girls involved have to agree to it and have the Hokage's approval. For his situation, it would solve a LOT of his problems." Anko explained with a grin.

The Alecrast women were taking this at face value instead of getting upset at it. After all, who were they to call into question the traditions and customs of a different culture and on top of that, it was purely consentual. On top of all that, Naruto seemed to like them all equally and wouldn't take advantage of them, but the real trick would be explaining this to Denise and Celecia, who might not understand. With this out of the way, they decided to retire for the evening, seeing the sunset through one of the windows.

"What about you, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"Oh, I live with Genie-sensei on the outskirts of town. It's nice and quiet out there and there is plenty of room to train, since it's next to a huge clearing in the forest and it has a small creek nearby for fresh water. There's also lots of game to hunt and we only have to go into town to for essentials and missions. It's only a few minutes away from town travelling shinobi style, anyway, so I'm still nearby." Naruto told them.

"Oh...I see. We have rooms at the Inn thanks to Merrill so we'll be headed there after we visit the baths again." Sakura told him as they all got ready to jump off, Sakura and Hinata both giving him a huge hug while Anko gave him a noogie, and Shikamaru giving a lazy wave before they all jumped off. Merrill and Ila decided they also had enough, so they too made their way home for the night.

"G'Night, kiddo! Good job on putting that ass Conrad away!" Merrill told him as she walked away.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Naruto. Good night." Ila said gently as she ruffled his hair affectionately, making her way back to the Guild's Dormitory.

"Man...It's been a LONG day." The new Chuunin sighed tiredly as he and his teacher made their way back to their small hut at the edge of the forest.

From around the corner, a figure made itself known, having seen and heard everything.

"So...They are on to us, are they? That fool Foltess could never pull this off alone. It seems as though I shall have to step in and handle this myself, starting with that girl he mentioned, Ila." The man sneered as he stalked off in the direction of the Academy.

_**OFF IN THE FORESTS OUTSIDE OF TOWN...**_

A certain buxom young elf was currently making all haste towards the town in hopes of reaching Naruto in time and telling him of what's been going on in the Tarsius Forest since the last time he'd been there.

As things have gone, a couple of weeks after Naruto and his party left the forst, the spirits had been acting strangely. They didn't answer anyone who called upon them and the weather seemed to be out of whack. It was the dead of summer, but there was snowfall and biting winds. After another couple of weeks, the weather and the spirits became violent, injuring many, but thankfully, no one was killed...yet. They sent out a team of scouts to ascertain the situation and they came back with disturbing news.

It seemed that the organization the sorcerer Ansel worked for was in the forest and the unrest as their doing. The were seen working on a strange magical device that seemed to twist the very fabric of time and space. The excess energies that were being put off by this device was whipping the spirits into a frenzy, causing all of the destructive weather. Celecia had grown worried that her people would suspect Naruto of betraying them due to these happenings, so she set out for Ohfun alone to find him and see if he could help them.

As she drew near the town, she put a cowl over her head to hide her elven ears, since humans were naturally suspicious of magical beings and she didn't want to take risks going in. She managed to hop over the walls and into the city itself unseen and was now scanning the streets for any sign of Naruto or his teammates. After an hour of searching, her aching body was screaming at her to rest when she spotted a familiar symbol adoring a similarly familiar metal plated headband. She knew only one person that bore that insignia.

_'Naruto...I found you!'_ She thought happily as she descended on the person with lightning speed...Only to discover that it wasn't Naruto at all!

"Naruto! I'm so happy to see you!" She cheered as Shikamaru's face was nearly smothered by her bountiful chest as he struggled to breathe while the rest of the Konoha search party was wondering who the hell this crazy girl was and what she wanted with the resident sloth.

"Troublesome..." He mumbled in to her breasts as she pulled him out of heaven _**(As Jiraiya was thinking...)**_ and faced him.

"Hey...You're not Naruto!" She exclaimed to the surprize of the group.

"Let's see...Blond hair, pointy ears, big boobs...I guessing that you're Celecia." Tsunade ventured to guess with a knowing smirk.

"Why...yes...I am. How did you know that and why do you all have the same emblem as Naruto?" She asked in return.

"I'm going to assume that he told you what a shinobi is, because that is what we are. We're from his village and we came here to take him home with us. I am Tsunade, the leader of his village and his adoptive mother." The other buxom blond introduced herself as she changed gears.

"I've heard the story of how you two met, but would you mind telling us your end? It sounds like you like the gaki a lot judging by how you ambushed Shikamaru here." The Sannin asked, her grin getting bigger by the minute.

Like she thought, the blond elf girl blushed furiously before she answered.

"W-Well... I first met him around the edge of the city's forest while he was training. He was able to spot me even though I was hiding pretty well from him and we started talking. We parted ways for a while until he and his team wound up on our forest. My grandfather, who is the leader of the Elder Council, wanted them to be put to death because he thought they were in leauge with a sorcerer named Ansel, who had been terrorizing my people and trying to steal the wood from our trees." The elf maiden explained until Anko had a question.

"Why the hell would they want your wood?" She asked.

"The trees that grow within our village are beyond ancient and because of the spiritual power residing within the woods, they have immense magical power and magicians use them to make their magic wands. Anyway, before they could make a decision, Ansel had a small army of dark creatures attack our village, intending to wipe us out this time. Naruto convinced his team to help us out and they all managed to aid us in repelling the creatures while Naruto took out Ansel himself. He used some kind of intense power and ripped that vile man apart on the spot, but it put him into a coma for two days..." She had to pause again when she saw grave looks from the elder three ninja.

"You've seen him in his Bijuu state and you still care for him?" Jiraiya asked carefully.

"Bijuu? Is that what that was called?" Celecia asked, confused.

"No...That's not entirely correct. Since we're here in a different world and you've already seen it, we can tell you..." Tsunade said as she explained just what a Bijuu was and how Jinchuuriki like Naruto were made. The truth left her feeling appalled at the thought of sealing something so maelvolent inside of a baby, just to make a human weapon. Naruto's case was different than the rest, but it still didn't make things any better when she was told how Jinchuuriki were typically treated, with fear, hate and malice. Naruto's childhood was, sadly, normal for one of his kind.

"That's horrible..." She murmured as she collected her thoughts. This new knowledge did nothing to change the way she felt for him. If anything, it strengthed her feelings toward the short blond. After a few moments, though, she was brought out of her musings to finish her story, which she did, along with the last thing Sakura and Hinata wanted to hear out of this impossibly beautiful maiden.

"...And that is why I like him so much!" Celecia concluded her tale with a bright smile. The reaction her tale got was mixed...VERY mixed.

Jiraiya was sizing her up and had to admit that he never thought he'd live long enough to see a woman with a rack that could rival Tsunade's.

_'Holy crap...That brat hit the MOTHERLOAD and she's damn near as stacked as Tsunade! Hot damn, I'm proud of my Godson! He he he ha ha!'_ The old pervert mentally cackled with glee.

Anko was eyeing her figure and felt a pang of jealousy.

_'Damn...If I were a lesbian, I'd TOTALLY do her.'_ The Snake Mistress thought.

Shikamaru was still a little flushed from having been shoved into her boobs like he had been.

_'Still...That felt NICE.'_ The nearly narcoleptic Nara _**(Who the hell do I think I am? Dr. Seuss?)**_ thought with a blush.

The most interesting reactions were that of Tsunade and the two girls. The blond Sannin was almost bursting with mirth at the fact that Naruto had yet ANOTHER girl after his affections and she was really quite a looker, too. From what she had been told by Carwess about the elves and how the viewed human, mainly with disdain. The sheer fact that he earned the trust of their people and the granddaughter of their leader was over the moon for the brat spoke volumes.

Sakura and Hinata, on the other hand, weren't too thrilled by the news. This new girl wasn't only exotic_** (If elf ears and huge boobs aren't exotic, then I don't wnat to know what is!)**_, she was also VERY pretty and...ahem...well developed. Even Hinata, an early bloomer, couldn'trepel mammaries of that magnitude!_** (Sorry! Just watched Star Wars with my kids and that's been stuck in my head. Dammit!)**_ This was boob envy to end all boob envy!

_'I KNOW that girl didn't just say that!'_ Sakura thought.

_**'Holy hell! Her tits are HUGE! They're nearly as big as Lady Tsunade's! Damn our parents and the bug bites that we inheirented from that old skank we called a mother!'**_ Inner Sakura concurred.

_'What the hell is it with blonds and huge boobs?'_ Hinata thought with a grimace as she looked at her own boobs.

One thought was shared though...

_'This just got even harder...'_

_A/N : Chapter 10 is now done and over with. Damn...This took me almost four months to push out. That's been like taking a four month long mental crap, but hopefully it will have the same satisfying end! As per usual, R & R with the usual flames, suggestions, gripes, bitching and complaining. I hope y'all like this!_


	11. New Doors, Old Enemies

_**I know that this took a long time to crank out, but things have been happening here at home that needed my attention. I hope that this new chapter meets with your approval. If you need a recap, read back a few chapters first.**_

_**MAGIC GUILD, MASTER CARWESS'S STUDY...**_

Before going home, Naruto and Ila decided to drop by the Guild to inform Master Carwess of Foltess's strange behaivor. Walking through the halls and into the study, they found not only Master Carwess, but also two other instructors, Masters Rowen and Talia. Master Rowen was a very tall man around Jenny's age with sandy blond hair that was starting to go white and pale green eyes. Mistress Talia was an exotic looking woman, tall with tanned skin like Genie but with a wizened look on her face. She was also the same age as Jenny and Rowen. Both of them were venerable Magicians and loyal to Carwess.

"Ahh...Please come in. I believe I know what this visit is about...The actions of Foltess. Yes...He has been getting more bold these days. Who ever is backing him must be getting ready for something big, but we cannot figure out what..." Carwess surmised.

"Yeah...That creep started insulting my friends. He's lucky Anko-nee didn't gut him where he stood. She was the one that sniffed him out and spooked him." Naruto replied.

"I must admit, Miss Anko did give him quite a fright." Ila chuckled as she told them how she nearly made him soil himself.

"These shinobi would indeed be valuable allies against the Black Cross. I wonder if we could hire them to help keep tabs on them?" Master Rowen wondered.

"I agree. The tales of their abilities, coupled with what I have personally seen young Naruto accomplish...They could be of great help to us in restoring order." Mistress Talia added.

The teachers and the two students kept on discussing what should be done about security measures and the two students asking for a little help with their studies until another knocking was heard at the doors to the study. All of them fell silent.

"Who is it?" Carwess asked as the door opened to reveal Tsunade and Jiraiya, who walked into the room with one more person. This person was obviously female, but with cowl hiding her face.

"Who is the young lady with you?" He asked. Jiraiya nodded to her and she removed her cowl to reveal her true appearance.

"An elf?" Rowen gasped, surprized that an elf would actually enter the Guild, but she stunned them further by rushing in and snapping Naruto into a bone crushing hug.

"I'm so happy to see you!" She cheered and giggled, mushing his face into the valley between her breasts.

"Nfff t cyu, too. _**(Nice to see you, too.)**_" He replied, his reply muffled by her chest.

"She's come to tell you about something happening in her people's forest...Something to do with Magicians." Tsunade stated, all of the magicians in the room now paying her rapt attention.

"What's this about more rogue magicians in Tarsius Forest?" Carwess inquired.

"Well...You already know how the elves communicate with the Nature Spirits and live with them in harmony. What's been happening is that the spirits have been running amok, creating havoc throughout the forest. We sought out the cause of this and found that there were strange magicians creating some sort of magical device in the forest. The energies it was radiating were whipping them up into a fury. So far, no elves have been seriously hurt, but it's only a matter of time. The weather has also been adversely affected by this. I wanted to come here and have Naruto come with me to the forest so I could prove he was innocent of all this." Celesia stated.

"Wait...Why would they think Naruto had anything to do with this?" Jiraiya inquired.

"My people...Have always be distrustful of humans, Naruto being one of the only humans they ever liked. Now, with this happening, some on the council are looking for somewhere to place the blame and are looking in Naruto's direction." She explained.

"Damn councils...Always trying to take the easy way out." Tsunade growled before she faced them again.

"I guess that we will accompany Naruto and yourself back to the forest." Tsunade declared.

"Hime...Are you sure?" Jiraiya asked.

"Yes. I also hear that you could use some help looking into other matters. I can have Anko and the rest help you there. It's the least we could do for taking such good care of Naruto for us." Tsuande stated.

"That is very good news, Tsunade. We could certainly use the help, being as shorthanded as we are. I hear that Miss Anko is a specialist in this area, is she not?" Carwess asked.

"Yes she is...One of the very best. She also specializes in making people squeal and cough up information." Jiraiya confirmed.

"Good...Ila, I would like you to work with the Konoha shinobi on this and uncover as much as you possibly can about the plans of the Black Cross. Also see if you can find out their identities, as well." Carwess requested of the yound red-head.

"Yes, Headmaster." She replied.

"Rowan, Talia...I need you two to start keeping a very close eye on the rest of the staff. Determine who can and cannot be trusted. Also, aid the Konoha shinobi as much as you can." He ordered.

"Yes, Lord Carwess!" The two replied crisply as they strode from the room to plan out their duties.

"Now...Based on the runes Miss Celecia described, it sounds like they are setting up some sort of portal or gateway, but I cannot fathom WHY...Perhaps you can descern that when you arrive in the Elven village." Carwess suggested.

"Now...Shall we go now, or in the morning?" Tsunade asked.

"Tarsius Forest is dangerous enough during the day, but to traverse it at night is suicide. We should wait til morning." Celesia advised.

"Good to know. We can set out at daybreak and also inform the others about their new mission." Tsunade decided as she turned to the elf maiden.

"Do you have a place to stay for the night?" She asked.

"Um...No...I didn't think about that..." She admitted sheepishly, making the other blond chuckle.

"No worries. Just stay in my room tonight and we can meet with Naruto and Jiraiya in the morning." Tsunade assauged as she took the young elf by the shoulder and disappeared in a flurry of leaves, Jiraiya doing the same. Naruto himself left in a similar way, but to his final stop of the evening before heading home.

"I hope they can stop them from ripping the very fabric of nature apart..." Carwess hoped.

_**MYLEE TEMPLE**_

Naruto Shunshin'd in front of the entrance to the temple and was welcomed inside for the final time today. He didn't need a guide, since he knew this place like the back of his hand and he knew where Jenny's office was by heart, so he made his way there. Along the way, he ran into Melissa, one of the last people he wanted to see at the moment. He was about to turn away and ignore her, but she called out to him, causing him to pause.

"Wait, Naruto." She called out

Keeping his features guarded, he turned to see Melissa approaching him. Melissa knew that ordinarily, she wouldn't even consider doing what she was about to do. But after everything that happened since yesterday, he deserved this. When she got close enough, she hesitated before getting down onto her knees before him. Her action surprised everyone present...Including the person Naruto had come to see.

"Naruto, I know that I have done you wrong since the moment you first arrived." Melissa stated

_'Understatement of the year...'_ Naruto thought.

"I judged you based on your appearance when you first arrived and on what I heard, but I never got to know who you are. I refused to acknowledge or appreciate what you do, how you do it, or why you do it. Yet despite how I treated you, you fought for me. You could have let Conrad kill you or allow him to defeat you and surrender so you would be rid of me. But you didn't." The once haughty priestess lamented.

She then did something that truly shocked everyone. She lunged forward and grabbed a kunai from Naruto's holster with her left hand. She then opened her right hand and slashed her palm. With her right hand now a fist with blood dropping to the floor, and with tears of hope and desperation in her eyes, she gazed into his.

"Naruto Uzumaki, by my blood, everything I just said is the truth. Please, forgive me. Please, let me earn your trust." With that, she collapsed forward onto the floor and cried.

Naruto was momentarily speechless by Melissa's actions, and he wasn't certain if she was telling the truth. But Kyu assured him that she was. Getting down to one knee, he placed a hand on Melissa's shaking shoulders to get her attention.

"During this past week, I kept my ears open, and I talked with Tessa and Jenny-obasan. I know how Isabelle and some of the others have treated you – contempt, disdain, distrust. Doesn't that sound familiar to you?" Naruto asked her calmly.

Melissa already knew that she had been treated the past week the same way she treated Naruto. But she soon realized what he was really saying. She had been treated by the citizens of Orphen the same way most of the citizens of Naruto's home village treated him. When he saw Melissa realized what he was saying, he continued.

"Though we now have something in common, there are two big differences. First, what happened to me was because of things I had no control over. You, however, brought it upon yourself. I think it was going to happen sooner or later. Conrad made it happen sooner. Second, you only had to deal with it for a week. I've dealt with it since I was born."

She looked at Naruto with astonishment in her eyes as realization struck her.

_'The past week has been a nightmare for me, but it was only a week. But Naruto had lived in a constant nightmare his entire life. How could he still be sane after all this time? How is it that he remained so strong?'_ She realized, self-loathing hitting her like a hammer, Naruto looking to Jenny.

"You told me about the rules that are involved with being a chosen champion. I know that basically, where she goes, I go. And where I go, she goes. But she's not coming with me and Celecia to investigate the disturbances back at her home." The young ninja hero told her, but before Melissa or Jenny could voice their objections, Naruto continued.

"It has nothing to do with the lack of trust between me and Melissa. He might not have been much of a teacher to me, but Kakashi-sensei did teach me a few things. One of them was that we need to keep our heads in the game or we'll lose them. Melissa's an emotional wreck right now, and I don't think Celecia or her people can afford to wait for her to get herself together. And I can't see you, Kaa-san, or even Mylee asking her to continue her duties while she's all messed up like this. I don't want to see her get hurt or killed due to this." He explained as he turned to face Melissa.

"You need time to have everything that happened this week set in. I'm giving you that time." He then gave Melissa a genuine smile.

"I'm also giving you a chance to correct your mistakes and repair your friendships with Merrill and Genie. You three have been friends long before I came, and I don't want to be the cause of you losing two of your precious people." Naruto finished, finally getting that off of his chest.

Melissa couldn't hold back any longer. She got up and hugged Naruto as tightly as she could.

_'If I hadn't been convinced that Naruto's not a demon before, I am now. He could have rejected my offer, but he didn't . More importantly, he considered my feelings and gave me a chance to seek forgiveness from my friends, my peers, the townsfolk, and Lady Jenny. I'm truly beginning to see just how special he truly is. Mylee sent an angel to be my chosen champion.'_ Melissa as she cried in the boy's shoulder.

Naruto sighed as he gently pried her off of him and had her look him in the eyes.

"Melissa...I need to get going now. Just remember what I said and when I come back...We can talk more. Okay?" The young boy...no, man told her. She nodded and let him leave.

"I pray for your safe return..." She whispered as Jenny placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"You have finally learned, Melissa. You should know that I am very proud of you for realizing your error." Jenny told her.

"No...I shouldn't have had to apologize in the first place." She replied.

"Oh? And why is that?" Jenny asked.

"Because I should have listened to you and dropped these...childish ideals that clouded my thinking. I should never have doubted Mylee's judgement." Melissa answered her.

_'She has finally grown up and seen the world for how it truly is. Naruto...I truly believe, now more than ever, that you will be the greatest Hero our world has ever known. I never thought I would see it during my lifetime.'_ Jenny thought as she had Melissa head back to her room to get some rest while she retired herself.

_**THE NEXT MORNING...**_

Naruto arrived at the Inn where Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Celecia awaited him early in the morning. The operations against the Black Cross had now officially begun with these two teams mobilizing against them in secret. Naruto and his team would be investigating the disturbance in the Tarsius Forest and if necessary, wipe out the magicians causing it and whatever they are working on. The second team, led by Anko and Ila, would be investigating the activities of the Black Cross within Ohfun with Masters Rowan and Talia acting as advisors and back up while they screened the Guild's personnel for any collaboators. After Melissa got her head on straight, Genie, Merrill and herself would be joining the other team in the duties, both the Guild and Mylee Temple paying them handsomely for it. All of this was meant to be kept top secret, so as not to alert those spying for the Black Cross.

"You ready to go, kiddo?" Jiraiya asked, Naruto nodding.

"We should be going then. I'll lead the way." Celecia stated. That brooked no argument with the shinobi, who had no doubts about her leading them in the right direction. With a leap, all four travellers took off at top speed through the trees of the woods and off to their objective.

Unknown to them, someone had been watching them.

_'So...Melissa's vertically challenged champion is taking off on this grand mission is he? He'd better think again, since my new champion and I will be taking the glory...'_ Isabelle smirked as she alerted her team, who eavesdropped on a conversation between Jenny and Melissa but conveniently didn't overhear the part about the necessity to keep this a secret.

Within moments, she and her team had left the city on horseback due to the high rate of speed of the shinobi, following them thanks to the talents of their youngest member. The unlucky...I mean, chosen champion of Isabelle was a young man named Leonard Bernstein, the son of a high ranking lord in Ohfun's royal court. He was, in simple terms, a very pleasant person, one that fits the criteria of Melissa's former delusions in everyway. The next teammate was much older than the others, around Jiraiya's age. Jankensen, the loyal manservant and bodyguard of the Bernstein family, followed his young master where ever he goes, including his fledgling Adventurer career. Just like the two Sannin, he is much more than he appears. Finally, the youngest of the group, Lilly, a Faris Priestess and child prodigy. She was even younger than Naruto, but only by a couple of years. She had been chosen for this team solely due to her magical abilities and talents.

After a few hours of travelling, the shinobi and elf reached the Southern end of Tarsius Forest as they stopped for a moment.

"I have to warn you now...Tarsius Forest is easily one of the most dangerous places you will ever enter...Especially now since the spirits have run amok. The dangerous creatures and my people being extremely hostile are the least of our worries." Celecia warned them before heading inside.

"Is that all? Training Area 44 is MUCH worse, and we send our Genin in there to test their teamwork." Tsunade replied with a smirk.

"Genin? Isn't that what Naruto was?" She asked.

"Yep. As good as the kid is, you've still never seen a Sannin at work. I'm the one who trained him AND his father. Like a Grandson and son respectively." Jiraiya chuckled, making her gasp.

"Yeah...From what I was told, my old man was pretty amazing and Ero-sennin here trained him from day one." Naruto added.

_'Then...I not only have Naruto with me, but two super ninja?'_ Celecia thought, still trying to wrap her mind around the level of power and skill that was escorting her as they began to hop through the trees to avoid some of the nastier denizens of the forest.

As the team bolted inside the forest, Isabelle and her group rode up to the edge of the tree line having watched them take off.

"Miss Isabelle...What are they?" Leonard asked.

"One of the blond women was definitely an Elf, but why would an Elf trust a human? And how did they leap off like that?" Jankensen added his own question.

"That little urchin comes from a culture that trains their fellow heathens to do things like that. Come on, we don't need their parlor tricks to survive here, Mr. Leonard. Not with your skill..." Isabelle replied, both insulting her rival's Hero and trying to butter up her own at the same time.

"O-okay..." Leonard stammered as he dismounted, grabbed his sword, and took point until Jankensen stopped him.

"No young master...This forest is dangerous beyond belief. I do not know why they dashed in there like that , but it is suicidal to go in there blind. I will take point." The old man said.

"Well...Mr. Leonard _is_ the champion, so I believe he should be first." Isabelle agrued, but a harsh glare from the old veteran stopped her dead in her tracks.

"Foolish little girl! Have you no idea what this forest is like?! It is dangerous enough even with me in your group, but I refuse to gamble with the young master's life by letting him take point. I will not argue this again." The old man growled.

"Thank you, Jankensen. I trust your judgement." Leonard thanked him.

"No thanks needed, young master. I wish to see you grow into a fine young man and dying in here is not an option. Come." Jankensen commanded, drawing a curved Scimitar out and cautiously led them into the forest.

"There is something very wrong here...As if the spirits themselves have been thrown into chaos." Jankensen muttered.

"...Yes. They cry in agony...Pain..." Lilly, the young girl added as they ventured deeper into the forest, still trying to track the unique energy source the three humans were emitting.

Further inside the forest, Celecia had sucessfully led them to the Elven Village, hopping out of the trees and into the square. The reception they got was very mixed. Some were very happy to see him, mainly the younger elves. However, many of the elder elves glared at them intensely, but that barely even fazed the shinobi as they followed their guide to the village council chambers. At the doors, the guards halted them aggressively with their swords.

"Come to steal more wood, have you? And you even brought other filthy humans to help do your dirty work." A particularly tall elf growled at them from behind the guards.

"Rivel! He had nothing to do with this! He's come to help us again! Now get out of the way and let us in to see my grandfather." Celecia argued. The young man eyed Naruto with a look of absolute contempt before he stalked away and let them inside. They were led to the council chambers, where many of the elders were dicussing how to best handle this new crisis when they saw the hall doors open to reveal Celecia.

"My granddaughter...Thank the spirits you are safe." The old elf sighed in relief.

"I am well, grandpa, but I have brough some help to deal with the rouges in the forest causing thus whole mess. You remember Naruto, right?" She asked. At that, the council blew up, some were thanking the spirits that he had returned to help them while the rest were blaming him for everything. The elf named Rivel silenced them and spoke.

"Honored elders...This Naruto's timing is just _too_ convenient, showing up to help us like this. I say that HE is to blame for all of our troubles!" He cried out, more of the elders agreeing with him.

"Calm down!" Tsunade bellowed at the top of her lungs as she forced her way into the chamber.

"Who are you?!" Rivel demanded.

"I am the leader of Naruto's people, the Konoha Ninja, Tsunade Senju and this is Jiraiya, his mentor and the Toad Sage. He had nothing to do with what has been happening to your village as of late! We were all in Ohfun, having been reunited with him once again after we all believed him dead! What proof can you provide of his involvment?" She demanded right back.

"You insolent human wench! We have all the proof we need! He is a human and a magician! Of course he's guilty!" Rivel snarled.

"So you would blame him solely due to being human and a magician? Are you really so ignorant?" Jiraiya frowned, the two Sannin radiating with authority and strength while calling their judgement of character into question.

"All of you...Calm down! Naruto has done our village a great service in the past by slaying that crazed monster, Ansel, something you have so easily forgotten in your blind panic! I trust him with my very life!" Celecia argued passionately.

Tsunade and Jiraiya could see her affections for the boy plain as day in her voice and expressions. Unfortunately, this wasn't lost on Rivel, who had been hounding her for courtship for the past decade. After Ansel was defeated, he saw the affection she showered the human with and it sickened him to no end. Someone had come in and gotten between himself and the mate he desired. Celecia's hand in wedlock was highly sought after since she ascended into womanhood, but Rivel, who's own father was high up on the council and due to inheirit the seat soon, had chased away many others who had tried to catch her fancy.

"Celecia! Your opinion of the human is biased! You favor the boy in a romantic light and I find that disgusting! Why not grace a more worthy man with your hand?" He replied, malice, hate, and even a hint of lust evident in his words.

"Like who? You? I don't think so, Rivel. I see your little game here. You just want them to hate Naruto so that you can have me all to yourself. That is very shallow and petty for someone who wants to sit on the council." Celecia retorted. Naruto was honestly flattered that she thought so highly of him and she was willing to stand up to her people on his behalf. Tsunade and Jiraiya were also really impressed with her.

_"I'm really liking this girl..."_ Tsunade chuckled.

_"Yeah...The gaki's got a real winner on his hands."_ Jiraiya replied as they watched this all unfold.

"ENOUGH!" Celecia's grandfather, the head elder Halcyon, yelled, forestalling all further arguments.

"Naruto Uzumaki has already saved our people once, almost at the cost of his own life! Celecia has brought him back to help us deal with this new threat and I intend to give him my complete support!" Halcyon bellowed out, challengeing anyone else to speak out.

"You senile old man...This filthy human has you confused. Your granddaughter's mind has been poisoned by his very presence." The rebellious young man stated in a cold tone as he addressed the rest of them.

"When he slew Ansel, you all felt that dark, evil power flowing from him. If we trust him, he could turn that demonic power on all of us! I say we kill this demon, before he kills us all!" Rivel shouted, trying to rally support to his cause. A few of the other elders and council members rallied, but many still sided with the chief elder, who's wisdom had steered them through very dark times. Tsunade and Jiraiya were far from amused.

"You ignorant piece of shit...This demon...This plague you revile so much...IS MY SON!" The beautiful Sannin screamed in rage, her Ki making some of the weaker willed rebel elders pass out. Rivel was rattled, but not completely deterred.

"You...You're a demon, too..." He stammered out.

"No more so than my son, who had endured our entire village calling him a demon, punishing him for things he never did all his life. I refuse to allow this to ruin any chances he has at happiness again." Tsunade snarled at them, daring them to come close with Jiraiya backing her up.

"You dumbass...If I wanted to do all that...I would have done it by now! Celecia was one of my first friends when I got dumped in this world and I'll never hurt her!" Naruto yelled at the ignorant young man.

"You little brat!" Rivel snarled as he prepared to leap across the table and throttle the boy, but Tsunade simply plucked him right out of the air, moving faster than any of them except Naruto and Jiraiya could see, and slammed him to the ground.

"You might want to remember yourself, child...Or I might not be as generous next time." She growled as Halcyon stood up to reign in the chaos.

"Chief Elder! These...Humans just attacked Elder Hrumgrim's son! We demand justice!" Another excitable elven man exclaimed.

"No...I know what I saw. I saw a spoiled, ignorant child attempt to harm our village's savior and his companions. Rivel...You are expelled from this chamber until further notice. Leave at ONCE!" Halcyon thundered, pointing at the door.

Rivel stomped away, only stopping to sneer once more before exiting the room. Rivel's father could only bury his face in his hands in embarrassment and shame at his son's actions.

"Chief Elder...I deeply apologize for my son's action this day." Hrumgrim sighed.

"No fault lies with you, old friend. Rivel has already entered into manhood, so his actions are his own. The is nothing for you to apologize for." Halcyon settled calmly as they continued to discuss the happenings in the forest as well as what they would do to deal with them.

"Master Carwess at the Magic Guild suspects that they are trying to set up some sort of magical portal here in the forest, but the reason is still a mystery to us. We can guess that they plan on using the ambient magic that this forest is abundant with to help power it." Celecia remarked.

"Hmm...This does not bode well...If this thing they have wrought continues it's wicked work, not only will the spirits be driven mad, the very forest itself will die. We must devise a way to destroy this gateway and dispose of the ones working on it." Halcyon murmured.

The discussion went well into the evening, but outside the village, Isabelle's party had managed to reach the edge of the village thanks to Lilly's protection spells that kept them hidden from hostile creatures.

"So...There is actually a village in the Mylee forsaken forest?" Isabelle huffed.

"Something is not quite right here...I think we should leave." Jankensen suggested.

"I think not! I am tired from this long journey and I am quite sure Lilly is exhausted from casting spells over us. We are staying here for the night and we will resume our search for that little ragamuffin's group in the morning." Isabelle demanded.

"I think she has a point, Jankensen. Lilly looks tired, so we should rest while we can." Leonard stated.

"Young master...I do not agree, but I will obey." The old man sighed as they walked into the village, only to be halted immeadiately by elves with polearms and bows drawn.

"Halt! Why have you come here?!" An older elf demanded to know.

"We were lost in the forest and now one of our party has exhausted her magic trying to keep us safe. We only seek to rest ourselves and leave in the morning." Leonard tried to reason with them, but Isabelle made the situation worse.

"We already know there are humans like us here already. We followed them here." She stated, making the group of elves even anrgier, clapping irons around their wrists.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" She shrieked as they were dragged off and then shoved into a cell.

"For all we know, you might be spies of the ones causing all of the trouble here in this forest!" The same elf growled as Naruto and his group arrived to see what was happening.

"Isabelle?! What the hell are you doing here?! Are you insane?!" Naruto exclaimed. Leonard was about to explain things to them, but Isabella cut him off.

"You were going to hog the mission all to yourselves, but I will not let you. My champion, Mr. Leonard, deserves the accolades this will bring in more than some common mongrel like you." She sneered, making her teammates try to shut her up.

"Shut your mouth, you foolish little girl! This boy and those with him are far more than they seem if they made it through the forest without spells." Jankensen barked at her as he turned to them.

"I apologize for her rudeness. No harm was meant." He offered, the two Sannin chuckling at the way he reigned in the arrogant priestess.

"So...Who is this Mr. Leonard?" Jiraiya asked.

"That would be me good sirs, good lady." Leonard stated politely as he stood up.

"I am Leonard Bernstein and this is my Adventuring party. First is my manservant, Jankensen." He introduced the short old man, who answered with a curt nod.

"Next is Lilly, a Faris Priestess. She cast the spells that allowed us to get through the forest." He explained next, gesturing to the small girl who was a few years younger than Naruto who simply stared at them, as if trying to figure them out.

"Finally, I believe you already know Miss Isabelle." He stated with exasperation.

"...The power you possess is not magic...What is it?" The silent little girl inquired.

"It's chakra..." Tsunade explained briefly, the others getting the gist of it.

"So...I was correct to assume that you are warriors of some sort..." Jankensen murmured as the explanations went on. The old warrior was deeply impressed with the young ninja's life accomplishments thus far and had a gut feeling that this was only the beginning.

_'If the boy maintains his ideals later in life, he will become a great and just leader in his own right. I am sure that his parents, whomever they were, would have been very_ _proud.' _

Leonard was highly impressed with these ninja and especially how they start at such a young age. The younger champion present had far more real world combat experience than himself from what he had been told by the apparent leader of his people, Tsunade. This boy, who was only thirteen, had fought in a war in which he was a hero, freed two nations, saved another ninja village and fought in several life-or-death battles before Leonard himself had even been allowed to leave his father's estate.

_'How odd...Looking up to someone almost half my age, but he deserves my respect. He has done far more in his short life than I can even dream of.' _Leonard mused thoughtfully.

"I don't know HOW you found out about this mission, but you will NOT breathe a word of it to anyone. This knowledge is restricted to those involved, Head Master Carwess and High Priestess Jenny. You were never supposed to know so if you blab and the wrong people find out, I will come for you after dealing with them. Is that understood, young lady?" Tsunade told them, especially the haughty young priestess. The trace amounts of Ki were just enough to scare her into compliance.

"I see the logic in your need for secrecy. Rest assured that Master Bernard and myself will stay silent about this entire debacle." Jankensen swore, the shinobi knowing that he could be trusted, his young charge nodding.

"Me too." Lilly answered silently as the small party was shown to a small hut where they could rest while Naruto and his party left to discuss matters further.

"The area where the disturbances are the strongest are centered around here..." Celecia pointed out on a map.

"So...If we were to concentrate our search in that specific area, we might just find what we're looking for." Jiraiya surmised.

"Correct. We would like you to set out just before daybreak, when the spirits are less active. This way, the chances of encountering hostile spirits will be much lower." Halcyon suggested.

"Makes sense. We have a higher chance of success this way." Tsunade agreed as they ate supper and bedded down for the night.

Before Naruto could even close his eyes, he felt someone kneel next to him. He looked to see Celecia hovering over him.

"What's up?" Naruto mumbled, but the young elf simply took him by the hand, led him out of the small cottage and up to the treetops that towered over the village, just high enough to where they could see the night sky.

Within Naruto, the Kyuubi had stirred and was _very_ interested in the elf maiden's actions.

_**'Oh ho...I think that lond eared hottie's gonna make her move...Heh heh...This kid is sooo much more fun to be locked up in than his mom or that Mito chick. At least he attracts the right gender and they're all pretty**__**hot.'**_The perv...Kyuubi thought as it watched everything unfold.

"Naruto...I'm glad that I could see you again." She opened up the conversation.

"Me too...You were one of my first friends here in this world and you didn't think I was a freak." Naruto replied as she sidled closer to him, resting her hand on his.

"You saved me and my people when you had no reason to, and you are a very sweet person. I really...Like you, Naruto." Celecia confessed to him, kissing him gently.

_**"WHOO! HOT DAMN, KIT! You hit the jackpot! He he he**_** he!"** The great demon giggled with over flowing perversion, finally attracting his host's attention.

_"Wha...YOU JACKASS! Quit horning in!" _Naruto fired back, but that hardly even fazed the fox while on the outside, Naruto was completely stunned by the kiss.

"You don't have to answer me right away. I just wanted to let you know how I felt. I'll see you in the morning." She giggled as she headed back to her house for some rest.

"Damn..." Naruto muttered, still sitting there as Jiraiya and Tsunade looked on.

"Heh heh...He really is a lucky kid." The old pervert chuckled.

"I think she'd be a good match for him, but c'mon. We need to get to bed, pervert." She told him as she collected her son.

* * *

_**DEEP IN THE FOREST AT AN UNKNOWN LOCATION**_

"Are you sure this will work?" A heavily cloaked man demanded, many more people behind him.

"I am certain, M'Lord. This device will allow us to open a door to the world those ninja came from. We managed to gain a small sample of his blood and used that to attune the portal. This will work and we can go forth and capture those other containers, and extract the demon's powers for our cause." Another man swore.

"Very well. Open the portal." He commanded.

"Yes...Lord Bernstein." The lackey complied as he opened the Dimensional Door.

* * *

_**OROCHIMARU'S SECRET BASE **_

_**LOCATION UNKNOWN**_

After a particularly rough training session with Danzou's few remaining ROOT, Sasuke sat in the central chamber in the small hidden base with Orochimaru, Kabuto, and Danzou himself watching.

"The boy grows stronger with each day...I cannot wait until the time comes to possess his magnificent body." Orochimaru nearly salivated.

"This makes sacrificing the Sound 5 worth it." Kabuto smirked, but Danzou had a different thought.

_'I would never let that short minded fool have such power. Only I have the wisdom to use it properly. I shall have make my manuvers very carefully.'_ The old cripple thought, but a massive windstorm erupted in the base, a glowing, pulsating disk appearing before them. Through it, they could see several men in cloaks, all gathered around it and walking through into thier world.

"What manner of jutsu is this?" The Snake wondered in awe, having never seen something like this before as the apparent leader of the group spoke.

"You. I suppose you are a denizen of this world. Would you know of something called a Jinchuuriki? Particularly one named Naruto Uzumaki?" Gerhard Bernstein nearly demanded, surprizing the ninja.

"Why yes...We in fact do. What ever could you want with a dead Genin?" Orochimaru asked with false sincereity.

"Dead? I think not." Bernstein scoffed as he explained all that had been happening, the others completely stunned upon finding out Naruto was indeed alive and very well in this other world, something which upset Sasuke very much.

_'Hmm...I could use some of this...Magic. It would be beneficial to aid them...For now.'_ The conniving Snake thought as he spoke.

"Why, I believe we can be of service to one another..." Orochimaru grinned evilly.

_**A/N: Wow...It's been THAT long?! Sorry about that! Well, I hope you all liked this newest chapter!**_


End file.
